Barcelona captain Raphinha scored a hat-trick to lead them to a commanding 4-1 home victory over Bayern Munich in the Champions League yesterday, ending a near decade-long winless run against the German powerhouses. Raphinha’s inspired night started when he gave Barca the lead a little over a minute after kick-off as he received a fine pass through by midfielder Fermin Lopez, beat the offside trap before rounding the onrushing Manuel Neuer and tapping into the empty net. Harry Kane levelled the score with a volley in the 18th minute but Robert Lewandowski put the home side back in front in the 36th minute after a mistake by Bayern’s defence and Raphinha extended Barca’s lead with two goals from quick counter-attacks either side of halftime.
Barca are ninth in the Champions League standings on six points from three games while Bayern are 23rd on three points after a second consecutive defeat. Haaland brace Erling Haaland’s spectacular acrobatic effort lit up Manchester City’s 5-0 win over Sparta Prague to move into third place in the Champions League table. The Norwegian scored twice, including a backheel at shoulder height, as City ran riot against the Czech champions.
Phil Foden, John Stones and Matheus Nunes were also on target for Pep Guardiola’s men, who remain unbeaten in all competitions this season. Sparta had taken four points from their opening two Champions League games against Salzburg and Stuttgart, but City were a step up in class too far for the visi.
