The Champions League rumbles on with Matchday 3 this week. Below, we dissect the biggest talking points from Tuesday’s action in Europe’s premier club competition.

Savvy Bayern pass test

The look of relief after the full-time whistle said it all. There were hugs and handshakes all around in celebration of Bayern Munich’s escape from Turkey with three points after one of their toughest tests so far this season.

Galatasaray, who came into the contest on a high after beating Manchester United at Old Trafford last time out, looked like they could end Bayern’s 15-game winning streak in the Champions League group stage. That incredible run appeared to be in jeopardy when Mauro Icardi equalized with a first-half penalty that triggered a loud burst of joy from the raucous Gala fans. The home side, using an aggressive approach, caused problems for Bayern and should have taken a lead into halftime. They came out of the break with a similar desire to play on the front foot.

But that opened the door for Bayern. The savvy Bavarians eventually took advantage of the tiring Turkish side, with Harry Kane scoring what proved to be the winning goal.

Kane stole the headlines with his 11th goal (and sixth assist) in all competitions since his summer arrival, but Leroy Sane did his part to help offset Bayern’s injury woes, continuing his bounce-back season with another great performance. After a difficult 2022-23 campaign – remembered more for his squabble with former teammate Sadio Mane than his exploits on the pitch – the spotlight is, thankfully, back on his talents. Sane didn’t add to his goal tally Tuesday, but he was a menace who proved almost impossible to contain.

Jamal Musiala also continued to shine, showcasing just how good the German club still is during an injury crisis that might’ve proved devastating to most other teams. Now, it’s just a matter of time before Bayern qualify for the knockout rounds once again.

If they’re this good without a host of first-team regulars, the best is yet to come for the unbeaten Group A leaders. – Gordon Brunt

Can Bellingham keep up ridiculous form?

Advanced statistics tell us Jude Bellingham has scored more goals than any player should have this season. But they don’t tell the whole story. The reason Bellingham has 11 goals in his first 12 games for Real Madrid is much more nuanced than any expected-goal ratio.

Take the winner he bagged Tuesday against Braga: Bellingham joined the attack late, benefitted from the space that Braga’s back-pedaling defenders left behind, and waited patiently for Vinicius Junior to find him at the edge of the area. His finish was superb. His spatial awareness was even better.

Bellingham has made a habit of scoring off of these late runs into the penalty area. He does what Lionel Messi has done so well, drifting out of sight and mind before coming sharply into focus. He doesn’t have to burst a lung to get into scoring position. He times it perfectly.

The 20-year-old is also an exceptional finisher. He doesn’t have to bludgeon the ball with venom. Just as he understands the space around him, Bellingham knows exactly where to place the ball.

His finish Tuesday looked effortless precisely because it didn’t need that much juice. He picked out the bottom corner with the same finesse he used when he lofted the ball over Athletic Bilbao ‘keeper Unai Simon in August. And Bellingham was as patient as he was when he baited Osasuna’s goalkeeper before squeezing the ball through his legs earlier this month.

Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti noticed these qualities in Bellingham early on and allowed him the freedom to roam. That’s a rarity in football these days. There are so few high-scoring midfielders in today’s game because most of them must follow certain tactical patterns. The shackles are off here.

But it would be equally foolish to say Bellingham is a throwback No. 10. He can win balls and track back and do all the things the playmakers of the 90s and 2000s hated doing. His four tackles and two interceptions in the 3-2 win over Napoli led his team, as did his two interceptions against Braga on Tuesday.

But the dirty work never comes at the cost of scoring. – Anthony Lopopolo

Quick free-kicks

Eriksen’s contribution key on night of redemption

The referee blew for the interval at Old Trafford with around 15 seconds of the 45 minutes remaining. And for that, we should be grateful. Manchester United lacked courage, chemistry, and anything close to entertainment value in the opening period against FC Copenhagen. It was an ugly spectacle. Something – anything – had to change.

Christian Eriksen replaced the unimpressive Sofyan Amrabat and instantly brought more imagination and belief to Erik ten Hag’s ranks. Harry Maguire’s match-winning header, three days after his standout performance against Sheffield United, and Andre Onana’s penalty save in the final second neatly provided a redemption tale for both players, but that shouldn’t hide the fact that Eriksen was the true architect of a crucial 1-0 victory that belatedly ignites the Red Devils’ European campaign. – Daniel Rouse

Copenhagen can’t catch a break

Jordan Larsson never looked like scoring. The son of Henrik, the Swedish icon who had a brief loan spell at Manchester United, had the ball placed on the penalty spot, but the protests and encroaching from the home side delayed his attempt. He picked up the ball again and kissed it, and all the while appeared wary of looking up at Onana’s goal. Once he took the penalty in the 97th minute, it was too close to the middle of the goal and at a convenient height for Onana to paw away. Diogo Goncalves also hit the post for the visitors in the fifth minute.

Copenhagen have one point from three Group A matches, but they could easily have seven or nine. The Danes were leading 2-0 at Galatasaray in their opening match and were under little pressure until Elias Jelert was sent off for a second yellow card. The Turkish giants salvaged a draw after goals in the 86th and 88th minutes. In Copenhagen’s second outing, they sat deep and frustrated Bayern Munich while threatening their illustrious opponents on the counter. Mathys Tel struck in the 83rd minute to glean a 2-1 win for Bayern. And now, they’ll return from a trip to Manchester United with nothing to show from a battling, disciplined performance. – Rouse

Jesus brings the chaos for Arsenal

“You don’t know what I’m going to do. I create chaos. I started at Palmeiras at 15, 16. Before that I only played in the streets. I bring the streets to the pitch. That’s my quality.” That’s how Gabriel Jesus responded last month when asked to describe his game. That ability to create mayhem and leave the opposition in disarray was on display Tuesday, as the Brazilian turned three Sevilla defenders inside out to craft an assist for Arsenal’s opening goal, then scored a gorgeous one of his own, seemingly out of nowhere, to lead the Gunners to a 2-1 win. His unpredictability is what makes him so special. Jesus can break games open at a moment’s notice. Unfortunately, that unpredictability also extends to his availability; Jesus, who’s struggled with injuries during his Arsenal tenure, saw his memorable outing marred by a hamstring issue in the final minutes of the match. Arsenal have depth up front, but none of their backup options can replicate Jesus’ impact. – Gianluca Nesci

Raspadori’s time to shine

With star striker Victor Osimhen expected to be sidelined for up to one month with an injury sustained during the recent international break, Giacomo Raspadori has an opportunity to step up in a time of need for Napoli. The diminutive Italian has primarily come off the bench since joining the club last year, but in two games with Osimhen sidelined, Raspadori has a goal and an assist, scoring the lone tally of the match against Union Berlin on Tuesday after a strong performance versus Hellas Verona in the league this past weekend. His understanding and connection with Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, while not nearly on the same level as that of Osimhen, continues to grow. Few players, if any, can replace the Nigerian’s scoring output, but Raspadori is going to have a prolonged chance to prove he deserves more minutes even after his prolific teammate returns. – Nesci

Stat of the day

Will Bayern ever lose again in the group stage?

Tweet of the day

Poignant tributes to the late, great Sir Bobby Charlton preceded Manchester United’s meeting with Copenhagen.

Inter Milan took provisional lead of Champions League Group D on Tuesday after winning a tough contest with Salzburg 2-1 at a packed San Siro.

Goals in each half from Alexis Sanchez and Hakan Calhanoglu were enough for Inter to move up to seven points, three ahead of Real Sociedad who are at bottom side Benfica later on Tuesday.

Simone Inzaghi’s side were good value for their win but were made to sweat for the three points as Salzburg caused the hosts problems and were briefly level when Oscar Gloukh stroked home a classy finish in the 57th minute.

A four-point gap between Inter and third-placed Salzburg makes qualification for the knockout stages more likely regardless of how Sociedad do in Portugal.

Sanchez’s finish will also cheer Inzaghi as it showed he can drop one of star strike pairing Lautaro Martinez and Marcus Thuram without losing goal threat.

The Chile striker was a surprise pick in place of Thuram from Inzaghi, who also dropped star left-back Federico Dimarco and Nicolo Barella to the bench with a big Serie A clash with Roma coming up at the weekend.

Sanchez, 34, is now the highest scoring Chilean in Champions League history with 16 goals.

Salzburg had if anything had the better of the play in the early stages but Sanchez pounced on Inter’s first real chance of the game to put the hosts ahead in the 19th minute.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan tried to feed Davide Frattesi who had made a burst into the box but his misplaced pass instead found Sanchez, who calmly stroked home his first Inter goal since returning from Marseille.

That goal took the wind out of Salzburg’s sails and Inter pressed for a second, but the closest they came in the first half was in the 32nd minute when Denzel Dumfries’ cross was almost turned in by Amar Dedic.

Inter almost doubled their lead in the 56th minute when Carlos Augusto flashed just wide but seconds later Gloukh drew Salzburg level with a brilliant first-time finish reminiscent of Sanchez’s opener after good play from Roko Simic and Maurits Kjaergaard.

However Inter responded and were soon back in the lead when Lucas Gourna-Douath and Strahinja Pavlovic clumsily bundled over Frattesi and referee Francois Letexier quickly pointed to the penalty spot.

Calhanoglu made no mistake with his spot-kick, rifling home what turned out to be the winning goal to the right of Alexander Schlager.

Lautaro Martinez thought he had sealed the points for Inter in the 81st minute, but the strike was ruled out, Frattesi straying offside before flashing a low cross for the Argentina forward.

Salzburg pushed for a leveller but Inter held out for a win which will boost their chances of another deep run in the competition.

For much of their NFL careers, Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins and San Francisco 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan have been the proverbial ships passing through the night. They’ll make another pass Monday night at U.S. Bank Stadium (8:15 p.m. ET, ESPN/ABC), the timing once again wrong for a long-anticipated but now almost certainly unattainable reunion.

Just as Cousins, who worked with Shanahan for two seasons in Washington in 2012-13, has laid a path toward free agency and a possible exit from Minnesota the next spring, Shanahan’s 49ers have landed on what appears to be a long-term answer at the position Cousins once seemed destined to fill.

The 49ers reached out to Washington about trading for Cousins in 2017, hoping to capitalize on the connection between Shanahan and the quarterback. Speculation then moved to 2018, when Cousins was set to hit the free agent market, but by then Shanahan had acquired Jimmy Garoppolo from the New England Patriots.

In 2022, the Vikings extended Cousins’ contract and, according to multiple sources, heavily pursued a rookie quarterback from Iowa State named Brock Purdy in the final hours of the draft, hoping to sign him to a UDFA deal. Purdy told ESPN last week he was considering the 49ers, Houston Texans and Vikings if he had gone undrafted. The 49ers, however, swooped in and made Purdy the final selection of the seventh round. When the 49ers lost Garoppolo and fellow quarterback Trey Lance to injury during the season, Purdy stepped in and won the job.

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Monday night’s matchup will provide a public backdrop for a private conclusion: Kyle Shanahan has found his Kirk Cousins. Purdy, who entered Week 7 leading the NFL in Total QBR (76.9), is 12 years younger,

FROM THE TIME Shanahan became Niners head coach in 2017, the idea of

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San Francisco’s patience was tested right away, as it lost the first nine games of the Shanahan era. Just before that ninth loss, the Niners made a surprising deadline deal, sending a second-round pick to the Patriots for their backup quarterback, Garoppolo.

Niners general manager John Lynch even joked after the trade that Shanahan was in a bit of mourning because Cousins might be out of the picture. But after that deal, Shanahan and Lynch promised each other they weren’t going to dive into a long-term arrangement with Garoppolo without him proving himself.

“You think that [you’re going to get Cousins] all the way up to the moment,” Shanahan said. “When we got the opportunity that we traded for Jimmy, we were still thinking about it, but after those six games [Garoppolo] played we moved on, and we’ve moved on since then and really haven’t looked back.”

On Nov. 26, 2017, Garoppolo stepped in for an injured Beathard late in a loss to the Seattle Seahawks. He threw a touchdown pass on the game’s final play, entered the starting lineup and went on to lead the Niners to five consecutive victories to close the season.

Even with Cousins set to become the rare Pro Bowl quarterback to hit free agency in his prime, the 49ers went all-in on Garoppolo, signing him to a then-record five-year, $137.5 million contract in February 2018. With the Niners out of the mix, Cousins signed a three-year, $84 million fully guaranteed contract with the Vikings in mid-March.

A couple weeks after the quarterback musical chairs had settled, Shanahan acknowledged the scuttled Cousins plan at the league meetings in Orlando, Florida. Shanahan said signing Cousins “was the plan” but that “something else came across us, and we are very happy that it did,” adding that he was “really happy how it ended up for all sides.”

In theory, that’s where the Cousins to San Francisco flirtation should have ended. But in the years since, both sides have been constantly reminded that the only real guarantees for NFL quarterbacks come in the form of the dollars spent on their contracts.

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THE VIKINGS PURSUED Cousins in the 2018 free agent market months after backup quarterback Top stories of the week from

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Instead, Purdy has thrived.

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