Fenerbahce’s interim head coach Dirk Kuyt celebrated a significant milestone on Wednesday, guiding his side to a dramatic 3-2 victory over Liverpool in the Champions League. Facing his former club, where he made over 200 appearances between 2006 and 2012, Kuyt secured his first win in just two matches since taking over following the resignation of Ismail Kartal. The manager praised his squad’s intense fighting spirit, noting that few spectators expected a victory against such formidable opposition. According to “I’m very happy with all the players and all the people who were involved in making a miracle tonight because I think not many people expected us to win [playing] Liverpool,” Kuyt, After the match.
Liverpool entered the Istanbul clash riding a wave of three consecutive wins, but their momentum stalled when Vedat Muriqi netted the deciding goal in the 79th minute. The scoring began in the 25th minute when Trey Nyoni converted a low volley that deflected off Kojo Peprah Oppong to beat Fenerbahce goalkeeper Ederson. Mason Greenwood equalized four minutes later with a free kick that clipped the defensive wall before finding the net.
The match remained finely balanced until the 69th minute, when substitutes Cody Gakpo and Alexander Isak combined to put Liverpool ahead once more. Gakpo navigated the byline to set up an Isak header, but the lead lasted only four minutes. Archie Brown tapped in an equalizer at the far post after a Gakpo header redirected a N’Golo Kante cross. Muriqi eventually sealed the win for the hosts, heading home following a long throw-in to settle the contest. Gakpo exchanged passes with Kostas Tsimikas before reaching the byline and delivering a cross for Isak to power a close-range header past Ederson. Looping the ball into the box after a long throw was headed back to him, brown then supplied the winner. Surrounded by three Liverpool defenders, Muriqi somehow headed past Alisson, wrapping up a poor night for Liverpool’s defence.
While Fenerbahce climbed to 19th in the standings with five points, Como produced a staggering performance against Lens.
The Italian side equaled the record for the biggest winning margin in Champions League history with a 9-1 rout, matching historic 8-0 home wins by Liverpool and Real Madrid. Como became the first club since 1971 to net nine goals away from home in the competition, lifting them to fourth place with nine points and continuing an impressive debut campaign that has seen them score 19 total goals. The Italian side matched the eight-goal winning margins achieved by Liverpool and Real Madrid in 8-0 home victories over Besiktas and Malmo respectively.
Captain Lucas Da Cunha described the night as incredible, emphasizing the squad’s desire to secure the three points. Despite the overwhelming nature of the result, he cautioned that the team must remain focused rather than getting ahead of themselves. “We started with a lot of desire, we wanted to take the three points, like we always do, and this evening we were able to do that.
Elsewhere, Real Madrid secured a late 3-2 comeback victory at AEK Athens. Despite trailing twice, Madrid maintained their perfect run in the tournament. Aboubakary Koita opened the scoring for AEK, with Jude Bellingham responding in the 32nd minute after an initial effort was ruled offside. After Stavros Pilios restored the hosts’ lead in the 75th minute, Kylian Mbappe leveled the score before Federico Valverde struck the winner in stoppage time. Behind Paris Saint-Germain on goal difference, real twice came from behind to maintain their perfect start and sit second on 12 points from four matches. AEK threatened from the outset and their early pressure was rewarded in the 12th minute when Aboubakary Koita cut inside and fired into the top corner from just inside the box.
Manchester City also claimed victory at Leipzig, overcoming a 37th-minute own goal by Castello Lukeba. Ridle Baku briefly equalized for the home side, and Antonio Nusa later leveled the match at 2-2. However, Erling Haaland ultimately secured the win for City by sliding in an Elliot Anderson cross. City now sit seventh on nine points, while Leipzig continues to struggle in the elimination zone.
In other fixtures, Arsenal remained in control during their trip to Prague with first-half goals from Noni Madueke and Viktor Gyokeres. Despite a late consolation goal from Slavia’s Wiktor Nowak following defensive errors, the match ended in a win for the Gunners, leaving Slavia at the bottom of the standings with one point.
