The first-leg matches of the UEFA Champions League play-offs wrapped up on Wednesday night, with all four games decided by a single goal—leaving the ties finely balanced ahead of next week’s return legs.
The action wasn’t as dramatic as Tuesday’s fixtures when Jude Bellingham’s last-minute winner for Real Madrid against Manchester City stole the headlines, but there was still plenty of tension across Europe.
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Onyedika impresses as Club Brugge seal controversial win over Atalanta
Super Eagles midfielder Raphael Onyedika played a key role in Club Brugge’s 2-1 victory over Atalanta in Belgium.
The 23-year-old featured for the entire 90 minutes as the Belgian side secured a narrow win in controversial fashion.
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Brugge took the lead in the 15th minute through Ferran Jutglà, but Atalanta responded just before halftime when Mario Pašalić fired home an equaliser.
The match appeared to be heading for a 1-1 draw until deep into stoppage time when Brugge were awarded a contentious penalty in the 94th minute.
Gustaf Nilsson stepped up to convert from the spot, giving the hosts a slender advantage ahead of the second leg in Italy.
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Ademola Lookman, Atalanta’s Nigerian forward, missed the clash due to injury but will be hoping to return for the reverse fixture.
Chukwueze features as AC Milan fall to Feyenoord
Over in the Netherlands, Samuel Chukwueze came off the bench for AC Milan but could not prevent the Italian giants from suffering a 1-0 defeat against Feyenoord.
The match was decided early on, as Brazilian winger Igor Paixão struck in just the third minute to give the Eredivisie side the advantage.
Chukwueze entered the fray in the 60th minute, but Milan struggled to break down Feyenoord’s disciplined defence. The seven-time Champions League winners will now look to overturn the deficit when they host the Dutch side at the San Siro next Tuesday.
Bayern, Benfica secure narrow wins
Meanwhile, Bayern Munich edged Celtic 2-1in Glasgow despite a spirited performance from the Scottish side.
Celtic had an early goal ruled out before Michael Olise and Harry Kane struck in quick succession at the start of the second half to put Bayern in control.
Daizen Maeda pulled one back for Brendan Rodgers’ men with ten minutes remaining, but the Bundesliga champions held on for the win.
ALSO READ: UCL: Ademola Lookman suffers knee injury ahead of Barca clash
In Portugal, Benfica secured a 1-0 victory over Monaco, with in-form striker Vangelis Pavlidis netting the winner.
The Greek forward, who famously scored a hat-trick against Barcelona in the group stage, capitalised on Monaco going down to ten men in the 52nd minute to hand Benfica the advantage.
What’s Next?
With just one goal separating each of the four ties, the second-leg fixtures promise to be thrilling encounters.
AC Milan, Celtic, Monaco, and Atalanta will all look to overturn their deficits, while Club Brugge, Feyenoord, Bayern Munich, and Benfica aim to protect their leads and book their spots in the Champions League last 16.
The return legs are scheduled for next week, with everything still to play for in Europe’s elite competition.
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