The UEFA Champions League delivered a feast of goals on Matchday 3, with 74 across 18 games, an average of 4.1 per match. Paris Saint-Germain beat Barcelona, Real Madrid beat RB Leipzig, Liverpool beat Villarreal, Real Betis beat Feyenoord and Aston Villa beat Viking FK, so all five sides remain a perfect 3-0-0. Como thumped Manchester United and put Michael Carrick’s future in doubt. Bayern Munich and Arsenal drew 2-2 at the Allianz Arena, with Bukayo Saka limping off early with an injury.
Gab Marcotti, Sam Tighe, Mark Ogden and Beth Lindop break down the action.
Will PSG regret going this hard against Barcelona?
PSG won the battle 4-2 at home, but Ousmane Dembélé hobbled off after 20 minutes, and Marquinhos and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia both went off injured on the hour mark. Kvaratskhelia has since been ruled out for the rest of the season with a torn ACL. Does that put Luis Enrique’s hopes of a Champions League “three-peat” at risk?
Ogden doesn’t buy the regret argument. He says any of the trio could have been hurt in Sunday’s Ligue 1 game at Lyon, that injuries are an occupational hazard, and that Luis Enrique has rested and rotated his stars all season. He argues the manager was right to field his best players against a team capable of challenging them, because they will get far more from facing Barcelona and Manchester City than Le Havre or Auxerre. Holding stars back for games like this, he says, would leave PSG with a boring, unchallenging season in France.
Lindop agrees. She says PSG have the unique luxury of resting players in domestic competition so they are at their best in the Champions League, and that approach has paid dividends over the past couple of seasons. She still calls Kvaratskhelia’s injury a real shame. When he is on form, she says, he is one of the most enjoyable players to watch in Europe and gives PSG another dimension. PSG remain favourites to retain their trophy, but losing him is a huge blow.
Marcotti says players can get hurt at any time, and the thing to avoid is injury through overplaying and fatigue, which isn’t an issue for PSG. He points out that PSG won Ligue 1 by six points and didn’t move into first place until mid-January. If they lose to Lyon on Sunday night, they could slip to sixth. Losing Kvaratskhelia makes them worse, he says, but they have attacking depth in Maghnes Akliouche, Ferran Torres and Mika Godts. In his view, centre-back Willian Pacho and midfielder Vitinha are harder to replace.
Tighe thinks Kvaratskhelia’s ability is being underrated. He would argue the Georgian is the best left winger in the world, assuming Kylian Mbappé is now classed as a reluctant striker, and one of the top 10 players overall. Désiré Doué continues to grow into a superstar and summer recruitment replenished the wings, but Luis Enrique’s intense style requires depth. PSG, Tighe says, have lost their best wide man.
Liverpool’s Iraola era: real progress or false dawn?
Liverpool fell 2-0 behind Villarreal through their own errors, then scored four straight goals to win 4-3. They are perfect in the Champions League and have lost only once in all competitions this season, to Manchester City. Even so, Bradley Barcola, Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak haven’t shown their best, Dominik Szoboszlai is carrying an injury and right-back is unsettled, though Ronald Araújo is playing well on an “emergency loan”. Rio Ngumoha’s dynamic performances are covering up underlying issues.
Lindop says nobody at Liverpool is under any illusions that Andoni Iraola’s side is a work in progress. They look a level below Europe’s top sides and were particularly poor in the first half-hour against Villarreal. She thinks they are too flawed to win the Premier League this season and probably the Champions League too, although you can never count them out in Europe. Iraola is implementing a new system with players still getting used to each other, which calls for patience given the injury woes. Ngumoha, she says, is a real cause for optimism: Tuesday was his most complete display in a Liverpool shirt. He is only 18, so nobody should expect it every week, but his future at Anfield is bright.
Tighe calls Ngumoha’s display Liverpool’s biggest positive outside the three points. The youngster looked great on the right flank and appears capable of solving a conundrum for Iraola. Liverpool entered the season with four wingers who all prefer the left side, an obvious imbalance. Iraola has tried Cody Gakpo, Víctor Muñoz and Ngumoha on that side, and Tighe feels the last of them can make it stick.
Marcotti calls it a false dawn only in the sense that Iraola won’t have an immediate impact on results, because his football takes time to absorb. Bournemouth took only three points from his first nine games, then improved season after season, from 11th to ninth to sixth. Marcotti says Iraola inherited a poorly assembled squad, and his defensive leader, Virgil van Dijk, is likely to leave. Iraola has rebuilt a defence before, losing three of his back four in a single summer at Bournemouth and coming back stronger. First-choice centre-forward Hugo Ekitike is out until the new year. Marcotti sees glimmers: Ryan Gravenberch is learning a lot, Jérémy Jacquet is growing in confidence and Muñoz looks serviceable. He doesn’t expect a “real” Iraola team for a year at the earliest.
Ogden thinks Liverpool are going along just fine. They are in transition and won’t challenge Arsenal and Manchester City for the title, but all clubs suffer some pain when they press the reset button. Ngumoha is their brightest attacking talent, which doesn’t reflect well on Wirtz and Barcola. Liverpool are exciting going forward and likely to score more than they concede in most games. Patience is required, he says, and it could be worse: “just look at Manchester United.”
Should Man United sack Carrick now?
United lost 4-1 at Como, and captain Bruno Fernandes openly questioned Carrick’s tactics after the game. Was Lisandro Martínez right in his rant last week, and should Carrick go straight away or after the international break?
Tighe says it can’t all be down to Carrick, but Martínez’s interview bailed him out massively. The team is not well set up and not functioning properly. United finished the summer short of a left-back and a striker, but they also signed midfielders who are performing horribly. Youri Tielemans has gone from one of the Premier League’s best midfielders to someone who looks way off it, and Tighe asks whether that is his fault or the team’s set-up. By that logic, Andrey Santos deserves more of a pass. Carrick holds a lot of responsibility, Tighe says, just not all of it.
Ogden says United’s players don’t look fit and their running stats are among the worst in the Premier League, which is down to the manager and his staff. He says the squad is full of misfits, some, like Luke Shaw, dating back to Louis van Gaal’s time (2014-16), and too many players are not good enough, too old or both. Carrick must go, Ogden argues, because he isn’t qualified for a job of United’s stature, and it never works when an interim manager gets the job permanently. United need a coach who will get the players fit, organised and disciplined. His suggestion is Antonio Conte.
Lindop feels a little sorry for Carrick. Martínez’s comments point to a club in disarray behind the scenes, and Carrick is the latest in a long line of managers to struggle at Old Trafford. She agrees his days look numbered: he did an excellent job steadying the ship last season but never had the pedigree to do it long term. She isn’t sure what the answer is. Conte would spice things up, but it would surely end in disaster, though it would make great content for the club’s “All or Nothing” documentary.
Marcotti took up Ogden’s challenge to find an example of an interim boss who succeeded. Roberto Di Matteo won the Champions League. Zinedine Zidane won three. Hansi Flick won the Treble and is doing rather well at Barcelona now. Tony Barton won the European Cup with Aston Villa. Edin Terzic won the German Cup and reached the Champions League final. Garry Monk took over a relegation-threatened Swansea City from Michael Laudrup and led them to eighth the following season. Chris Coleman took over a relegation-threatened Fulham and led them to ninth the next year. The difference, Marcotti says, is that all those men had exceptional players, a very solid club or both, and United are neither.
Marcotti sees two separate questions. Can Carrick get United where they want to be? Probably not, so he should go: it was too big a jump, midweek football is hard to adjust to, and this group of players running at half-speed aren’t doing it for him. For a critical game, the only senior outfield players on the bench were Joshua Zirkzee, Amad Diallo and Carlos Baleba. The second question is what is wrong with the club, because it clearly isn’t just Carrick. Here, Marcotti says, Martínez was right. There are serious issues of communication and drift, and it’s about accountability and vision, not just the transfer window and Jason Wilcox’s choices. That won’t be fixed straight away.
Ogden conceded Zidane and Flick but noted that Di Matteo was gone within months of signing a new contract, which is the fate he expects for Carrick. Marcotti replied that most United fans would be happy with Carrick winning a Champions League and then getting sacked.
What does Bayern 2-2 Arsenal tell us?
Arsenal were virtually at full strength, minus William Saliba. Bayern were without Joshua Kimmich, Michael Olise (suspended) and Jamal Musiala, and Luis Díaz came off injured after entering as a substitute.
Lindop calls it a high-quality game between two top sides with three brilliant goals. She thinks Arsenal will be happier, not just for the late equaliser but because it was another mature away performance. Eberechi Eze did well replacing Saka, and if any squad is equipped to deal with injuries, it’s Arsenal’s. She can see them going deep again. Bayern are hard to assess with so many players injured. Vincent Kompany will be disappointed with how they managed the game at 2-1 up, but she expects a different proposition once his big guns return.
Marcotti says that without Barcelona v PSG, this would have been the game of the round. Losing Saka after 10 minutes did Arsenal no favours, but they showed a ton of character. This was the Arsenal of last season, hunkering down, staying compact and playing in transition. That is not how they should play every game (Mikel Arteta agrees, he says), but it was right away from home. He backed the choice of Viktor Gyökeres and doubts Kai Havertz could have laid the ball off as he did for Declan Rice’s goal.
Bayern, Marcotti says, must be graded on a curve. Kimmich’s absence was keenly felt: Tom Bischof is great but a long way from Kimmich’s leadership. Alphonso Davies showed he can still cut it as a winger, and Olise’s absence leaves a gaping hole. Both opening goals came from outstanding transition passes, from Martin Ødegaard and especially Harry Kane. Arsenal neutered Bayern but not Kane dropping deep and finding streaking wingers. “There’s no answer to it,” Marcotti says.
Ogden says Bayern have the better squad, more talented individuals, more tactical flexibility and a goalscorer in Kane who is exactly what Arsenal need. He notes that Bayern would have reached last season’s final had they not met PSG in the semi-final. Right now, PSG, Bayern and Barcelona are head and shoulders above the rest, with Arsenal in the next group. Arteta needs to add variety and adventure to take them to the next level.
Tighe thinks the result suits everyone. Bayern expect to win at home, but with those absences in a league-phase fixture, a draw is palatable. Arsenal did what they needed to, and the fact that Saka’s injury didn’t rock them is a major positive. The extent of Saka’s injury is what will concern Arteta most, not any dropped points.
Dealer’s choice: what else stood out?
Tighe highlighted Manchester City’s 5-1 demolition of AEK Athens, driven by academy graduates. Phil Foden scored a hat trick and showed manager Enzo Maresca he has fire in his belly. Rico Lewis assisted two of the goals, and 17-year-old Floyd Samba won the free kick that started it all. Eighteen-year-olds Ryan McAidoo and Kaden Braithwaite came on and made an impact, McAidoo teeing up Foden’s third. It was something to keep the season-ticket holders warm on a cold, rainy night.
Ogden said the sparse attendance at the Etihad was a concern. He appreciates that football is expensive for supporters, but the empty seats pointed to City’s relatively small fanbase, which doesn’t tally with commercial earnings on a par with Real Madrid’s and bigger than Manchester United’s. When United played Sabah FK at Old Trafford last month, 73,685 fans paid to watch. The official attendance against AEK was 40,042. Ogden argues that when City’s regulars can’t afford to attend, the club doesn’t have enough fans to take the spare tickets. When a club claims to be a global superpower commercially, he says, the fans need to prove it by filling the stadium, as they do at Real, United, Liverpool and Bayern.
Lindop picked out Kane, with Monday’s Ballon d’Or ceremony approaching. He wasn’t quite at his sparkling best against Arsenal but still scored from the penalty spot and set up Davies. His accuracy was such that he could have ended the night with a hat trick of assists. She admits to some English bias, but she is rooting for him at next week’s ceremony in London.
Marcotti says there has been enough City hate lately and he couldn’t care less about the Ballon d’Or, so he focused on Como. Nico Paz could walk into just about any team in the world right now. Como were missing three starters (Trevoh Chalobah, Assane Diao and Moise Kean), and United had not conceded four in a game since May 2025, away to Brentford. Marcotti calls Cesc Fabregas “the real deal”. Como have spent beyond their means and will likely pay a hefty Financial Fair Play price, he says, but their players are mostly youngsters or middling players reborn under Fabregas.