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Champions League wrap – Como score nine, Liverpool lose in Istanbul

Como thrashed Lens 9-1, Liverpool lost at Fenerbahçe, and Arsenal, Manchester City and Real Madrid all won away on Wednesday night in the Champions League.

Como equalled the record for the biggest winning margin in the modern Champions League, and Liverpool lost their perfect record in Istanbul on Wednesday. Here’s how the big games went on matchday 4.

Lens 1-9 Como

Cesc Fàbregas’s Como won 9-1 in France, matching the eight-goal margin of Liverpool’s 8-0 win over Beşiktaş in 2007 and Real Madrid’s 8-0 win over Malmö in 2015.

Anastasios Douvikas scored a hat-trick, and Nico Paz scored one and set up another. Como are only the second side to score nine in a Champions League game, after Bayern Munich’s 9-2 win over Dinamo Zagreb in 2024.

The Champions League debutants are fourth on nine points, while Lens suffered the heaviest Champions League defeat by a French club.

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Fenerbahçe 3-2 Liverpool

Liverpool went ahead twice in Istanbul and still lost. Trey Nyoni scored his first goal for the club and substitute Alexander Isak headed in Cody Gakpo’s cross.

Each time, Fenerbahçe hit back quickly, through Mason Greenwood’s deflected free-kick and Archie Brown’s tap-in, before Vedat Muriqi headed the winner.

It was only interim coach Dirk Kuyt’s second game in charge, against the club he played for for six years. Liverpool have now conceded 10 goals in four Champions League games.

Slavia Prague 1-2 Arsenal

Arsenal were in control for the first half. Noni Madueke ran clear to score after nine minutes, and Viktor Gyökeres made it 2-0 before the break after a one-two with Mikel Merino.

Slavia were far better in the second half, as Gabriel and David Raya cleared headers off the line and Oskar Kubiak’s header hit the post. Wiktor Nowak scored late for Slavia, but Arsenal held on to reach 10 points. Slavia are now 23 Champions League games without a win, one short of AEK Athens’ record.

RB Leipzig 2-3 Manchester City

Erling Haaland ended City’s mini-slump with a 78th-minute winner, tapping in Elliot Anderson’s cross. That’s 13 goals in nine games against Leipzig.

City went ahead twice, through a Castello Lukeba own goal and an Enzo Fernández header, but Ridle Baku and Antonio Nusa equalised each time. City had lost their previous two Premier League games, the first time that’s happened since August 2025.

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AEK Athens 2-3 Real Madrid

Federico Valverde came off the bench and scored a long-range winner in stoppage time to keep Madrid perfect. AEK led twice through Aboubakary Koita and Stavros Pilios.

Jude Bellingham replied with a clever flick, and Kylian Mbappé made it 2-2 for his fourth goal in four Champions League games this season. José Mourinho’s side are level with PSG on 12 points and have won seven in a row in all competitions.

– AFP

Photo: Ahmad Mora/Getty Images

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