Five things we learned from the Champions League action | OneFootball

Five things we learned from matchday two of the Champions League, featuring Arsenal’s credentials, the state of Scottish football and Raphinha’s renaissance at Barcelona.

Arsenal can go deep in this tournament

After a goalless draw at Atalanta in their opener, Arsenal were keen to send a statement as Paris Saint-Germain visited the Emirates on matchday two. One of the club’s toughest tasks of the group stage, on paper, Arsenal produced a professional performance to beat the Ligue 1 champions in North London.

Mikel Arteta’s team have proven themselves capable challengers in the Premier League and are now aiming to do so in Europe. If PSG offered an early litmus test, it was one passed, and Arsenal’s resolute rearguard, set-piece threat, and strength in depth all bode well for a real tilt at a first Champions League triumph.

Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko, two players who helped relaunch Arsenal under Arteta, are struggling to get into the current side, while Mikel Merino made his debut against PSG after recovering from a shoulder problem.

Four points on the board represents a satisfactory start for the Gunners, who next host Shakhtar Donetsk. There are plenty of reasons to believe Arsenal can challenge the likes of Manchester City and Real Madrid in Europe this season.

Celtic struggles show state of Scottish football

Celtic’s 5-1 thrashing of Slovan Bratislava on matchday one was a rare highlight given the club’s recent European ventures. The new format offers up more winnable games, though perhaps also more mismatches. The Scottish champions were dismantled in Dortmund this week, conceding five goals before half-time and seven by the final whistle. It was the latest in a long line of heavy defeats in Europe for The Bhoys, who are simply not good enough to compete with Europe’s best.

Celtic find themselves in an impossible position. Far too good – on and off the field – domestically, the sorry standard of Scottish football has left them facing an uphill battle just to be competitive in Europe. Rangers, who reached the Europa League final in 2022, will mock and disagree but their last Champions League campaign ended with no points and a goal difference of minus 20, including a 7-0 loss to Liverpool at Ibrox.

The Old Firm once offered a banana skin for Europe’s top teams but that is no longer the case. Things won’t change until a proper plan to raise the entire standard of Scottish football is in place.

Raphinha renaissance continues

There was a time last season when it appeared Raphinha was destined for the exit door at Barcelona. The emergence of Lamine Yamal in his favoured position saw the winger out of favour and his future up in the air.

Raphinha found form after moving to the left-hand side before exploding in output under new head coach Hansi Flick this season. The Brazilian has featured across the forward line in recent weeks and has started the season spectacularly. After a hat-trick against Real Valladolid and two goals in a big win at Villarreal, Raphinha created one and scored another as Barcelona beat Young Boys 5-0 this week.

Operating in a central role, he made seven key passes against the Swiss side and impressed with his high-intensity running and quality in advanced areas of the pitch. He managed more shots (6-5) and chances created (5-4) than Young Boys’ entire side while levelling the opposition for touches in the opposition’s box (11).

There are few players, anywhere, in better form right now.

Inter the current Kings of the Bosman

Few teams have exploited free agency better than Inter Milan in recent years. The Nerazzurri have built Serie A’s best squad with smart recruitment, which has included targeting and securing a host of free agents.

Andre Onana was signed and sold within 12 months for a £50m profit, while of the current squad Stefan Di Vrij, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Marcus Thuram and Hakan Çalhanoğlu were all signed on free transfers. Calhanoglu scored a stunning free-kick during Inter’s 4-0 win over Red Star this week and has been transformed into one of Europe’s best deep-lying playmakers under Simeone Inzaghi.

This summer, Inter signed Piotr Zieliński and Mehdi Taremi as free agents and the latter proved his worth on matchday two. After a slow start in Serie A, the Iran international found his form against Red Star. Taremi twice won back the ball in dangerous areas to set up goals, first unselfishly squaring for Marko Arnautovic, before adding a second assist for Lautaro Martinez. The latter then allowed Taremi to take a late penalty to get up and running in blue and black.

In the last five seasons, Inter have banked a profit of €75.99m on player signings, while going from strength to strength under Inzaghi’s management. The Italian champions continue to show the value of intelligent recruitment.

Lille humble the holders

Lille produced the upset of the round after beating Real Madrid on a famous night for the French side.

Jonathan David’s penalty just before half-time was the difference between the teams, with Lille well worth their win after going toe-to-toe with the European champions. Lucas Chevalier was excellent in goal for Lille as the Spanish side dominated the big chances, but the hosts committed bodies forward and were confident to play through the lines at The Stade Pierre-Mauroy.

Lille’s win ended a 14-match unbeaten run for Real Madrid in this competition and the result might just serve as a warning sign for the club’s upcoming opponents. Atletico Madrid, Juventus and Liverpool all face Lille before the end of the league phase.

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