Champions League Recap: Liverpool Win Thrilling Real Showdown, Arsenal Overpower Czech Hosts, Spurs Blow Danes Away

Liverpool 1–0 Real Madrid: Mac Allister Delivers at Anfield

Alexis Mac Allister struck again against Real Madrid as Arne Slot’s Liverpool secured a hard-fought 1–0 victory in the UEFA Champions League league phase at Anfield.

Trent Alexander-Arnold’s return to Merseyside added intrigue, though he began on the bench while Liverpool dominated early exchanges. Mac Allister blazed over before Thibaut Courtois denied Dominik Szoboszlai’s effort after fine play from Florian Wirtz. Controversy followed when referee István Kovács overturned a penalty decision for Aurélien Tchouaméni’s handball after a VAR review.

Courtois continued to frustrate Liverpool, saving from Szoboszlai, Virgil van Dijk and Hugo Ekitike either side of half-time. The breakthrough finally arrived when Mac Allister powered in a superb header from Szoboszlai’s free-kick for his third Champions League goal, two of them against Los Blancos.

Alexander-Arnold entered to boos late on, while Courtois thwarted Cody Gakpo to keep Real alive, but Liverpool held firm. The result marked Slot’s first back-to-back wins since September, and extended Real’s poor run against English sides — just two victories in their last ten.

Slavia Prague 0–3 Arsenal: Gunners Cruise and Equal Record

Arsenal matched a club record of eight consecutive clean sheets with a commanding 3–0 win over Slavia Prague, maintaining their perfect Champions League start.

Slavia began with intensity, but Arsenal were composed, with Gabriel Magalhães going close early and Bukayo Saka twice testing Jakub Markovič. On 30 minutes, Saka converted a penalty after Gabriel’s header struck Lukáš Provod’s hand — confirmed by VAR.

Just 36 seconds after the restart, Leandro Trossard’s precise cross was buried by Mikel Merino from close range. Declan Rice then set up Merino’s second, heading past Markovič to seal the result.

Arsenal withstood late pressure as a potential penalty for Slavia was overturned, and teenager Max Dowman made history as the youngest player in Champions League history. Arteta’s men went top of the league phase table, while winless Slavia edge closer to an early exit.

Tottenham 4–0 Copenhagen: Spurs Hit Form in London

Tottenham surged into the Champions League knockout qualification zone with a 4–0 rout of Copenhagen, extending their unbeaten European home record to 22 matches since 2020/21.

Brennan Johnson opened the scoring after capitalising on a defensive error from Gabriel Pereira, slotting coolly beyond Dominik Kotarski. Spurs’ dominance grew, and Wilson Odobert doubled the lead soon after half-time when Randal Kolo Muani’s deflected effort fell perfectly for him to score.

Johnson was later dismissed after a VAR review for a foul on Marcos López, but instead of faltering, Spurs excelled. Micky van de Ven produced a stunning solo goal from his own half before Cristian Romero teed up João Palhinha for the fourth.

Richarlison twice struck the bar late on, but the emphatic win — Thomas Frank’s first four-goal triumph as boss — left Spurs well-placed in the table. Copenhagen, meanwhile, remain winless away and without a goal in 13 of their last 14 European road defeats.