The UEFA Champions League’s fourth matchday saw only one real upset, and even Lille’s win at Sevilla was merely notable because it took place in Spain.
Bayern Munich and Juventus rolled, Chelsea and Barcelona claimed slim but relatively controlling away wins, while Cristiano Ronaldo is perhaps the lone reason Manchester United isn’t in a Europa League place with two match days left.
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USMNT playmakers Brenden Aaronson and Christian Pulisic had good performances of differing length, while Weston McKennie was very good and John Brooks collected a win with Wolfsburg (while fouling Aaronson).
Let’s dig into Tuesday’s UCL action.
Malmo 0-1 Chelsea
Callum Hudson-Odoi set up easy Man of the Match honoree Hakim Ziyech for a goal as Malmo held firm but eventually succumbed to the reigning champions.
USMNT winger Christian Pulisic returned to the fold for Chelsea and came off the bench to deliver a lively performance with no signs of fatigue or injury.
Juventus 4-2 Zenit Saint-Petersburg
Paulo Dybala was a man on fire, scoring twice and setting up Alvaro Morata for another as Juventus’ attack oozed class in hanging four on their Russian visitors.
Federico Chiesa also scored for The Old Lady, who got a strong performance from Weston McKennie and over came a Leonardo Bonucci own goal before scoring thrice and seeing Sardar Azmoun strike for Zenit’s second.
FEDERICO CHIESA SCORES JUVE'S THIRD IN STYLE 💥 pic.twitter.com/lOvA5npLzd
— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) November 2, 2021
Wolfsburg 2-1 RB Salzburg
Salzburg, it seems, cannot just waltz into the knockout rounds, as Wolfsburg’s Koen Casteels made five saves behind its 3-4-3 to pull Wolfsburg onto five points.
Ridle Baku and Lukas Nmecha scored for Wolfsburg and USMNT back John Brooks was shown a yellow card for a foul on national teammate Brenden Aaronson, who was very good in the loss and won 13 of 19 duels.
Sevilla 1-2 Lille
An early Lucas Ocampos goal did not hold up, as Canadian star Jonathan David converted an equalizing penalty before halftime and Jonathan Ikone put the French champions up for good shortly after the intermission.
Bayern Munich 5-2 Benfica
Robert Lewandowski scored a hat trick despite having a penalty saved and both Leroy Sane and Serge Gnabry scored delightful goals in hanging a five-spot on Benfica.
The Portuguese visitors had the score at 2-1 on a Felipe Morato goal and 4-2 when Darwin Nunez scored late, but it never seemed like it was going to be enough.
HAT-TRICK FOR LEWANDOWSKI! WHAT A WAY TO MARK HIS 100TH #UCL APPEARANCE. 🎩 pic.twitter.com/fBnc7LgiUk
— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) November 2, 2021
Dynamo Kiev 0-1 Barcelona
Ansu Fati was gutsy enough to claim Lionel Messi’s No. 10 and now he’s done what the great one did so many times in a Barcelona shirt: save their Champions League bacon.
Fati’s 70th minute goal gave Barca a win in Ukraine to send Barca ahead of Benfica, six points behind Bayern.
Villarreal 2-0 Young Boys
Ex-Spurs and Watford man Etienne Capoue scored and set up former Bournemouth talent Arnaut Danjuma for another to help Unai Emery (for now) and his Yellow Submarine into a first-place tie with Manchester United.
Atalanta 2-2 Man United
Duvan Zapata had a special day with a goal and an assist for the Bergamo-based aside, but that man Cristiano Ronaldo had two sweet strikes to steal a point for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
UEFA Champions League group stage Matchday 4 results – Tuesday
Malmo 0-1 Chelsea – Pulisic returns
Wolfsburg 2-1 RB Salzburg
Dynamo Kiev 0-1 Barcelona
Sevilla 1-2 Lille
Bayern Munich 5-2 Benfica
Juventus 4-2 Zenit
Villarreal 2-0 Young Boys
Atalanta 2-2 Man United
UEFA Champions League group stage Matchday 4 fixtures – Wednesday
AC Milan vs FC Porto – 1:45pm ET
Real Madrid vs Shakhtar Donetsk – 1:45pm ET
Sporting Lisbon vs Besiktas
Man City vs Club Brugge
RB Leipzig vs PSG
Borussia Dortmund v Ajax
Sheriff vs Inter Milan
Liverpool vs Atletico Madrid
