UCL: Inter Milan Beats Arsenal; Atletico Madrid Stuns PSG With Late Winner
In a thrilling night of Champions League action, Inter Milan clinched a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Arsenal, while Atletico Madrid delivered a dramatic late blow to Paris Saint-Germain with a stoppage-time winner.
The match at the iconic San Siro saw Inter maintain their unbeaten record in the competition this season. A pivotal moment came just before halftime when Hakan Calhanoglu converted a penalty awarded after Arsenal’s Mikel Merino was deemed to have handled the ball in the box following a flick from Mehdi Taremi. Calhanoglu’s composed finish three minutes into injury time gave the Italian champions a crucial lead.
Inter’s coach, Simone Inzaghi, praised his team’s performance against a formidable opponent. “I think we played a great game against a strong side who play with great intensity,” he stated post-match.
Arsenal, on the other hand, faced their first European defeat of the season, leaving them in a precarious position three points behind Inter in the standings. Gunners’ manager Mikel Arteta voiced his frustration over the penalty decision, asserting, “We were very harshly done by. There is no deflection, nothing you can do in the box.”
In the second half, Arsenal intensified their efforts to equalize, yet they struggled to penetrate Inter’s resolute defense. Despite a close chance from Gabriel Magalhaes, who was denied by a brilliant save from Yann Sommer, the Premier League side could not find the back of the net, marking their second defeat in just four days.
Meanwhile, in Paris, Atletico Madrid pulled off a stunning comeback against PSG. The hosts took the lead early with a clever finish from Warren Zaire-Emery in the 14th minute. However, Atletico responded swiftly with Nahuel Molina leveling the score just four minutes later.
The match remained deadlocked until the dying moments, when Angel Correa scored a dramatic winner in the 93rd minute, securing a vital three points for the Spaniards. “Paris played very well, they attacked the whole match, but we were confident, we worked hard in defense and as a team, and we got our goal at the end to claim victory,” Correa said after the match.
For PSG, the loss deepened their woes, leaving them in the elimination zone of the group stage with only one win and a draw from four matches. With tough fixtures against Manchester City and Bayern Munich looming, the French champions face an uphill battle to progress.
Barcelona beat Red Star Belgrade 5-2 in Serbia to claim sixth spot in the standings.
The Catalans took the lead on 13 minutes via a stooping header by defender Inigo Martinez.
But Red Star struck back just prior to the half-hour when Silas Mvumpa sprang the Barca offside trap and lifted the ball past Inaki Pena.
Robert Lewandowski effectively ensured Barca stayed in the automatic qualification spots with a quick-fire double either side of the break.
Raphinha and Fermin Lopez then netted, before Felicio Milson curled in a late consolation for the hosts.
Jamal Musiala struck in the 67th minute to get Bayern Munich’s stuttering campaign back on course with a 1-0 win at home to Benfica.
The six-time winners’ record of two wins and two defeats leaves them mid-table with four matches remaining.
Aston Villa’s 100 per cent record in the Champions League ended with a 1-0 defeat at Club Brugge, sparked by a bizarre penalty conceded by Tyrone Mings.
After making his debut in the competition in just his second match back after a long injury lay-off, the England centre-half gifted Brugge a penalty in the 51st minute after he picked up a short goal kick taken by Emiliano Martinez.
Hans Vanaken stroked home from 12 yards to drop Villa to eighth.
Brest continued their excellent start to life at European football’s top table, a 2-1 win at Sparta Prague taking them to fourth place.
Second-half strikes by Ademola Lookman and Nicolo Zaniolo gave Europa League champions Atalanta a 2-0 win at Stuttgart.
RB Leipzig picked up their first points of the campaign with a 3-1 victory in the Netherlands against 10-man Feyenoord.
Shakhtar Donetsk of Ukraine defeated Young Boys 2-1, condemning the Swiss side to a fourth consecutive defeat in the competition.
