The second leg of the Champions League first round was set to end with two of the main contenders to win the competition stumbling at home, but only the defending champions failed to win at the start of the defence. They won the title in 2023/24. Playing in Manchester and starting with Ruben Dias and Bernardo Silva, City were held to a 0-0 draw by Inter, who included former Porto player Mehdi Taremi in the 90th minute. Paris Saint-Germain, with just 90 minutes remaining, with a goal from Portugal international Nuno Mendes (which UEFA would have ruled an own goal), broke the resistance of newcomers Girona.

At the Etihad Stadium, Pep Guardiola did not abandon his basic principles at the start of the defence of the unprecedented title he achieved last season, but City was unable to find a solution to overcome the usual Italian defensive dependability.

In a duel in which the Transalpine team never gave up on searching for an attack, City was always closer to the goal, but the goal defended by the Swiss Yann Sommer remained intact, ensuring the team led by Simone Inzaghi an important point.

In Paris, PSG's dominance in Girona's first Champions League match was more evident, but it was only in the final part that the Parisians got the three points.

Luis Enrique brought on Nuno Mendes and Vitinha in the 11th minute – Joao Neves replaced the former Porto player in the 63rd – but it had to wait until the final minutes for the French champions to find the back of the net, scored by Nuno Mendes.

One of the most surprising results of the night came from Prague, where Sparta had no problem beating Red Bull Salzburg. In the clash between the Czech champions and the Austrians, the away team had the better record, but Finn Kairinen's goal in the 2nd minute began to tip the balance in the Czechs' favour.

Just before half-time, Nigerian Olatunji capitalised on a Banak assist to extend Sparta's lead, and despite the Austrians having more possession, towards the hour mark, Laci made it 3-0 for the Czech Republic side.

In northern Italy, Bologna's new life after Thiago Motta is not going well. After the departure of the former coach to Turin, where he now leads Juventus, the club now led by Vincenzo Italiano continues without a win, and after three draws and a defeat in Serie A, Bologna again failed to win: 0-0 at home, against Shakhtar.

But tonight's victory came from Scotland, where Celtic beat Slovan Bratislava (5-1), while Borussia Dortmund confirmed their advantage in the trip to Belgium: 3-0 against Club Brugge.