New Delhi [India], September 17 : Kylian Mbappe scored twice from the penalty spot as Real Madrid launched their latest Champions League campaign with a hard-fought 2-1 comeback victory over Marseille at the Santiago Bernabeu, as per Sky Sports.
Real, aiming for a record 16th European crown, were stunned early on when Timothy Weah struck for the visitors. Mbappe, however, quickly equalised from the spot before sealing the win with a second penalty.
Elsewhere on the opening night of the league phase, Juventus and Borussia Dortmund produced a thrilling 4-4 draw, while Benfica collapsed against Qarabag FK despite holding a two-goal advantage.
Dusan Vlahovic and Lloyd Kelly struck in stoppage time to rescue a point for Juventus in a dramatic encounter. All eight goals came in the second half, with Dortmund taking the lead through Karim Adeyemi. Kenan Yildiz equalised, but Felix Nmecha put Dortmund back ahead. Vlahovic pulled Juve level again before Yan Couto and Ramy Bensebaini gave the German side what looked like an unassailable 4-2 lead. Yet, in a late twist, Vlahovic and Kelly scored to salvage the draw.
Qarabag stunned Benfica with a remarkable 3-2 victory. The Portuguese side appeared to be cruising after early goals from Enzo Barrenechea and Vangelis Pavlidis put them 2-0 up inside 16 minutes, but the visitors mounted a spirited fightback, with Leandro Andrade, Camilo Duran and Oleksii Kashchuk all on target to complete a famous win.
There was also a dream debut in the competition for Belgian champions Union Saint-Gilloise, who shocked PSV Eindhoven 3-1. Promise Akinpelu converted an early penalty, and Anouar Ait El Hadj produced a brilliant solo effort, running half the length of the pitch to double the lead. Kevin Mac Allister bundled in a late third. Ruben van Bommel grabbed a consolation for PSV in stoppage time.
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