Manchester City and Inter Milan's scoreless draw in their Champions League on Wednesday, coupled with Bologna and Shakhtar Donetsk's inability to find the back of the net, marked an uncharacteristically goal-scarce night for Europe's premier club competition.
A mere 13 goals were scored across six matches, contrasting sharply with the previous day's tally of 28, which included Bayern Munich's impressive nine-goal haul.
The occurrence of two goalless draws after just 12 games is a significant deviation from the norm, considering that last season's group stage, now discontinued, witnessed only four such results in 96 matches. The 2022-23 tournament boasted an average of three goals per game.
Girona, making their debut in the competition, appeared destined for a scoreless draw against Paris Saint-Germain but Nuno Mendes had other ideas. In the first minute of stoppage team, he netted the game's only goal that turned out to be the winner.
Borussia Dortmund secured a 3-0 victory against Club Brugge, thanks to late goals from substitutes Jamie Gittens, who scored twice, and Serhou Guirassy, who converted a stoppage-time penalty.
The Champions League, Europe's premier club competition, has seen the introduction of new teams and the return of long-absent clubs in its latest edition.
Sparta Prague put up a spirited show with a 3-0 win over Salzburg.
Despite its attacking intent, Bologna, which made its return to the competition after a 60-year absence, was unable to capitalize on its chances against the experienced Shakhtar Donetsk, who had a penalty saved in the fourth minute.
Slovan Bratislava, playing in the Champions League for the first time since the 1992-93 season, which marked the competition's rebranding from the European Cup, found the going tough. The Slovakian side fielded 37-year-old Georgian defender Guram Kashia, who made his debut in the competition.
Celtic demonstrated their dominance with a resounding 5-1 victory in Glasgow. The Scottish champions' goals were scored by a diverse group of players, including Liam Scales and Adam Idah from Ireland, Kyogo Furuhashi and Daizen Maeda of Japan, and Arne Engels of Belgium.
The Champions League is set to feature an unusual Thursday lineup, with high-profile matches such as Barcelona's trip to Monaco, Arsenal's visit to Atalanta, and Bayer Leverkusen's clash with Feyenoord.
The new Champions League format has been unveiled, with a packed schedule of six matches per night for three consecutive evenings. The competition now includes 36 teams, each facing eight different opponents until January. The results will be compiled into a single league table, determining which teams progress to the knockout stages.
