Champions League football made a return after the international break and with it brought many thrilling games and surprise results.
Bayern Munich defeated PSV Eindhoven 4-1 at the Allianz Arena in what was a clash of the champions of the German and Dutch leagues respectively. Pep Guardiola was in for a trouncing on his return to the Camp Nou as Barcelona handed a 4-0 thrashing to Manchester City. There were victories for Juventus and Borussia Dortmund as well, while Tottenham were held to a goalless draw against Bayer Leverkusen.
Besiktas emerged late winners at the San Paolo stadium as they defeated home side Napoli 3-2, and Arsenal continued their winning ways with a 6-0 demolition of Ludogorets. Leicester City continued their dream start to the Champions League campaign with another 1-0 win at home against FC København. Real Madrid defeated Polish side Legia Warsaw 5-1 at the Santiago Bernebau.
In what was another eventful week of Champions League football, we take a look at the five things that we learned from Champions League match day 3:
#5 Samir Nasri back to form
Samir Nasri, a player who many believed was past his heyday, is showing that he has still got it with his winner for Sevilla against Dinamo Zagreb. It was a passing masterclass from the Manchester City loanee, as he controlled the game brilliantly from midfield, and went on to score the lone goal of the game.
The Frenchman attempted a whopping 158 passes during his side's win over Dinamo Zagreb - a record for players apart from Xavi since 2005-06 in the Champions League.
"Nasri is performing and showing how good he is. He is a player at the height of his game, and he is getting us through the games,” said manager Jorge Sampaoli after the match. An outstanding display in the win at Leganés last weekend, followed by another winning contribution, he looks like a completely different player to the one that left Manchester.
Pep Guardiola may have deemed Nasri not good enough for regular first-team action at City, but he surely is impressing in his new Spanish club.
#4 Yannick Ferreira Carrasco – Atletico’s newest rising star
Yannick Ferreira Carrasco turned saviour for Atletico Madrid again as he volleyed home the winner from a Juanfran cross in Wednesday's 1-0 Champions League victory at Rostov. With the win, Atletico maintain their 100% record in this season’s Champions League after 1-0 victories against Bayern Munich and PSV Eindhoven.
Carrasco, who scored a hat-trick in Sunday's 7-1 battering of Granada, had also scored the winner in Atletico’s last CL fixture against Bayern Munich. He was looking threatening throughout the game in Russia, until he gave Los Rojiblancos the lead in the 62nd minute from a tight angle.
"Carrasco is doing well," manager Diego Simeone told reporters after the match. "I'm very happy for him and he needs to continue as he is.”
Carrasco now has five goals from his last four games for Atletico and is looking like the latest in the line of young stars the Spanish side has churned out over the years.
#3 Leicester City and Riyad Mahrez continue their remarkable run
Three games. Three wins. Nine points. Leicester City continued their perfect start to this season’s Champions League campaign as they defeated Danish side FC København 1-0 at the King Power Stadium. At the top of Group G, the Foxes’ qualification to the next round is all but sealed.
Leicester are struggling to repeat performances of their title-winning season in the Premier League, but are saving their best for Europe. Riyad Mahrez, who was benched for the English champions’ clash against Chelsea by Claudio Ranieri over the weekend, shone again with a deft strike past the opponent’s goalkeeper, securing three points for his team. He now has three strikes in three CL games, after his brace against Club Brugge in the Foxes’ Champions League opener.
His partnership with Algerian international teammate Islam Slimani was on show again, as the new signing turned provider for Mahrez on Wednesday. The signs are good for the Foxes and they will be hoping their dream run keeps on going.
#2 Arsene Wenger reaches another milestone as Arsenal manager
Arsenal bulldozed past Bulgarian side PFC Ludogorets Razgrad in the Champions League with a 6-0 win. The victory was Arsene Wenger's 100th win in all European competitions as the Gunners’ manager.
It was another complete performance from the North London club as frontmen Alexis Sanchez, Theo Walcott ,and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain got their names on the scoresheet, followed by a hat-trick for German playmaker Mesut Ozil. With the win, the Gunners went on top of the Group A with 7 points from their 3 games.
Wenger, who recently completed 20 years at the helm with Arsenal, was pleased with the emphatic performance, as his side put in another attacking masterclass and looked solid at the back. "It will be difficult not to be satisfied," he said speaking after the match. "We scored a lot of goals and kept a clean sheet.” But he urged his side to maintain focus as they continue their impressive run in both Champions League and Premier League.
#1 Guardiola’s protégé comes back to haunt him again
Pep Guardiola turned Barcelona into the greatest team of recent times as he led the Catalan side to their most successful period in the club's history between 2008 and 2012. And one man was at the centre of it all – Lionel Messi.
During his time at the helm, Guardiola credited Messi time and again for the heights the club reached. "Without him, we would be competitive," he said once. "But we wouldn't have achieved all that we have.”
And the Argentine was at his full prowess as Guardiola visited his former club with Manchester City. In a match that many expected to be a tight contest, Messi was at his imperious best, scoring a brilliant hat-trick as City were condemned to a 4-0 defeat.
The match also marked a return to Camp Nou for goalkeeper Claudio Bravo after he joined the English side this summer. But it turned out to be a disastrous evening for the Chilean as he received his marching orders early in the second period for handling a ball outside the area.
But the night belonged to the little magician, Messi as he weaved his spells around the City defenders helping his team to another victory.
