The UEFA Champions League is the ultimate trophy every club strives to have. The tournament features the best and strongest clubs from all over the world fighting each other to get their hands on the trophy and be crowned as the kings of Europe. The first week of the UEFA Champions League 2023 has now ended, and just like every year, the matches have shown us that anything is possible in the UEFA Champions League.
Although there weren’t any major upsets, there were definitely some nail-biters. Some clubs managed to save the match by scoring a last-minute goal, whereas others had to face defeat due to the mistakes committed.
UCL round-up: from Ivan Provedel’s heroics to Andre Onana’s shambolic error
It is only the first week of the UEFA Champions League group stage matches, and we have already seen something very rare happen. Lazio’s goalkeeper, Ivan Provedel, has a goal to his name. Lazio faced the Spanish club Atletico Madrid on their home turf. The Spanish guests managed to get an early lead after midfielder, Pablo Barrios scored a goal in the 29th minute.
Lazio tried to catch up but all their attempts failed till the last minute. Ivan Provedel became a Roman god for his club after the Italian international headed the ball into the net in the last seconds of the game making the score 1-1 and ending the match in a draw.
Real Madrid’s new star midfielder Jude Bellingham also did the same for his club when he scored in the 94th minute of Madrid’s match against Union Berlin.
While some players became heroes there were others who bear the burden of being the villain after their club lost due to their errors. Manchester United were beaten by Bayern Munich with a score of 4-3; but the match could’ve ended differently if a few mistakes were not made. United’s new goalkeeper, Andre Onana conceded a silly goal to Leroy Sane in the 28th minute. The Cameroonian managed to make contact with the ball, but it somehow slipped past him, giving Bayern a one-goal lead.
Christian Eriksen also made a grave mistake in the same game when he committed a handball in the 52nd minute offering the German side a penalty. Bayern’s new striker, Harry Kane stepped forward and easily converted it into a goal.
Points table following the opening week
We saw many breathtaking matches only in the first week of the UEFA Champions League. While there are clubs that could have gotten more points than they did there are also others who got lucky. Teams like Barcelona and Arsenal dominated their opponents and grabbed first place in their respective groups. Other teams like Real Madrid barely managed to sweep away a last-minute win to bag 3 points.
The final positions of every club after the UEFA Champions League Week 1 are as follows:
| # | Team | P | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Group A | |||||||||
| 1 | B.Munich | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 3 |
| 2 | Copenhagen | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| 2 | Galatasaray | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| 4 | Man Utd | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | -2 | 0 |
| Group B | |||||||||
| 1 | Arsenal | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 3 |
| 2 | Lens | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 2 | Sevilla | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 4 | Eindhoven | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | -4 | 0 |
| Group C | |||||||||
| 1 | Napoli | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| 2 | Real Madrid | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| 3 | Braga | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -1 | 0 |
| 4 | Union Berlin | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | -1 | 0 |
| Group D | |||||||||
| 1 | Salzburg | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| 2 | Inter | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 2 | Real Sociedad | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 4 | Benfica | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | -2 | 0 |
| Group E | |||||||||
| 1 | Feyenoord | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| 2 | Atletico | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 2 | Lazio | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 4 | Celtic | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | -2 | 0 |
| Group F | |||||||||
| 1 | PSG | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| 2 | Milan | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 2 | Newcastle | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 4 | Dortmund | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | -2 | 0 |
| Group G | |||||||||
| 1 | Man City | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| 1 | Leipzig | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| 3 | Crvena Zvezda | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | -2 | 0 |
| 3 | Young Boys | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | -2 | 0 |
| Group H | |||||||||
| 1 | Barcelona | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 3 |
| 2 | FC Porto | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| 3 | Shakhtar | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | -2 | 0 |
| 4 | Antwerp | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | -5 | 0 |
The UEFA Champions League has delivered the excitement and drama that we all expected and it will only increase over time. Which teams do you think will advance to the Round of 16? Let us know in the comments section.
