5️⃣ things we learned from Wednesday's eye-opening UCL action | OneFootball

The Champions League returned in the wake of some fantastic drama that played out on Tuesday evening, with some blockbuster matchups that came into focus tonight.

Liverpool passed a huge continental test with a home win against Real Madrid, Borussia Dortmund climbed up the table with a credible away win, and Aston Villa so nearly earned a huge continental scalp at Villa Park.

Here are five things we learned from tonight's action across the continent.

Liverpool truly are the real deal

Premier League leaders Liverpool have done it once again on a rocking Champions League night at Anfield with a 2-0 win over Spanish juggernaut Real Madrid.

Arne Slot's Reds looked the real deal across 90 minutes of action in front of The Kop, and despite a Mohamed Salah penalty miss, they were far and away the better side on this evening. And the data proved it further still.

Now sitting atop the European pile with five wins from five in conjunction with their impressive domestic form, one thing is certainly clear; Liverpool are the best side anywhere in Europe.

Additionally, the Reds are only the fifth side ever to win their opening five games in the Champions League campaign and concede no more than one goal.

Kylian Mbappé; persona non grata?

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My, my, my. Will the real Kylian Mbappé please stand up, or is this who he truly is?

Perhaps harsh, but ask most Madridista's and the star Frenchman is boiling over into persona no grata territory after Wednesday's performance.

If being pocketed by young Liverpool right-back Conor Bradley was not frustrating enough, a miss from the penalty spot that could have pulled Los Blancos level at one-all compouned what was yet another poor outing for Mbappé.

While his goal tally of seven goals in 12 appearances may seem solid on the surface, his overall performances since his inevitable arrival from PSG remain under scrutiny.

And rightly so.

Surprise package Dortmund strikes again

Few, if any, would have pegged Bundesliga outfit Borussia Dortmund as this season's surprise package in the Champions League, but Nuri Şahin's outfit continues to roll after a 3-0 win over Dinamo Zagreb.

A stunning goal from Jamie Gittens, which mirrored his strike from the weekend, highlighted a strong away performance during a 2024-25 season in which they have sometimes laboured.

Having now climbed up to fourth in the table while boasting the second-most goals in the group stage (16) behind Barcelona (18), there is still life for the Ruhr Valley side.

Amid a domestic campaign that already sees them ten points adrift from rivals Bayern Munich at the top, they will now want this European form to move over to the Bundesliga.

Emery leans into continental pedigree

On a night when a resurgent Aston Villa welcomed European royalty to Birmingham in their Champions League test against Juventus, manager Unai Emery nearly pulled off another masterclass tournament result.

Renowned for his ability to extract the absolute maximum from his sides on European nights, Villa's 0-0 draw against The Old Lady has them ninth in the table.

They also boast one of the best defensive records in the group stage, with just one goal allowed.

Though Morgan Roger's match-winner in stoppage time was controversially pulled back after Diego Carlos was judged to have fouled keeper Michele Di Gregorio, this result, added to their 1-0 win over Bayern Munich on matchday two, shows that Emery still has what it takes.

Timeless Di María still has it

Ligue 1 side AS Monaco have been one of the bright talking points of the Champions League group stage this season, and rightly so.

Coming into their clash with Benfica, Les Monégasques were undefeated in four (3-1-0) and took a Barcelona scalp along the way. They then had a chance to move to second with a win against the Portuguese club.

But Benfica had the last laugh despite going 2-1 down, scoring twice in the final eight minutes of normal time to deny Adi Hütter's men at Stade Louis II, with aging star Angel Di Maria at the center of it all.

Having found a rich vein of form this season at the ripe old age of 36, the Argentine winger continued to lead from the front.

His brace of assists, which helped the Portuguese past 10-man Monaco, adds to his Benfica legacy after recent clutch performances against Porto and Estrela de Amadora.

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