New Delhi, Sep 10 (IANS) Paris Saint-Germain made an impressive start to their bid for a third successive UEFA Champions League title as Barcelona hit five, Arsenal won in Italy and Liverpool came from behind to beat Atleti.
Ferran Torres hit a hat-trick in his first Champions League outing for PSG as the holders eased to a straightforward 6-1 win.
Ousmane Dembele got the opener on the rebound after Nuno Mendes hit the woodwork, then glanced in a header before his fellow forward took over.
Torres poked in and guided in a curled fourth and struck again from close range. Although Suleiman Camara pulled one back, Fabian Ruiz had the final say with the sixth.
Meanwhile, Raphinha registered twice as FC Barcelona laid down a marker at the Camp Nou with a 5-1 win over Feyenoord.
The Brazil forward struck the third-minute opener and Karim Adeyemi curled in a second midway through the first half. Raphinha’s second of the game and Lamine Yamal’s free-kick extended the advantage for Barca, who also hit the post through João Cancelo, before Sem Steijn pulled one back late on. Substitute Gabriel Jesus had the last word though, glancing in Yamal’s cross, UEFA reports.
Elsewhere, Liverpool made a winning start to their Champions League campaign with a 2-1 comeback victory over Atletico Madrid.
The Reds fell behind to Marcos Llorente’s finish 17 minutes into the first half at Anfield. But a firm response was punctuated by Dominik Szoboszlai’s equaliser and Alexis Mac Allister’s thump either side of the interval.
Andoni Iraola’s men thereby kicked off the new league phase with three points ahead of a trip to LASK of Austria next month.
In another match, Martin Odegaard’s wonderful 75th-minute strike earned Arsenal a hard-fought 1-0 win at Napoli.
A Bukayo Saka overhead kick and Mikel Merino header were among the best opportunities for last season’s runners-up in the first half, while Kevin De Bruyne and Matteo Politano drew saves from David Raya for the hosts.
Arsenal asserted their dominance in the second period and got the decisive goal when captain Ødegaard finished off a slick team move with a shot off the inside of the post.
–IANS
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