UEFA Champions League: Real Madrid edge Juventus as perfect starts power early standings

A statement night in the UEFA Champions League tightened the top of the league-phase table and delivered headline results across Europe. Real Madrid squeezed past Juventus 1–0 at the Bernabéu, Chelsea overwhelmed Ajax 5–1, Bayern Munich cruised 4–0 against Club Brugge, and Liverpool exploded to a 5–1 away win at Eintracht Frankfurt. With three rounds now in the books, five heavyweights have opened with perfect records, while a deep chasing pack jostles for top-eight positioning.

Champions League results: decisive wins and timely draws

• Real Madrid 1–0 Juventus

• Chelsea 5–1 Ajax

• Bayern Munich 4–0 Club Brugge

• Eintracht Frankfurt 1–5 Liverpool

• Sporting CP 2–1 Marseille

• Atalanta 0–0 Slavia Prague

• Monaco 0–0 Tottenham Hotspur

Each of the marquee victories came with a clear narrative. Madrid’s narrow win was built on control without over-committing, a reminder that elite tournament sides increasingly prize game-state management once ahead. Chelsea’s five-goal surge showcased a front line clicking at pace, with goals arriving from multiple sources rather than a single talisman. Bayern looked ruthless and balanced, mixing early youth impact with senior finishing to put their match away before halftime. And Liverpool’s five in Germany felt significant—the kind of emphatic response that can flip a team’s continental mood in a single night.

Champions League standings: league-phase snapshot

Early pace has been scorching. Five clubs have started 3-for-3 and sit on nine points: Paris Saint-Germain (+10 goal difference through three), Bayern Munich (three straight wins capped by a 4–0), Inter (nine scored, none conceded), Arsenal (three wins, three clean sheets), and Real Madrid (perfect start preserved with the Juventus victory).

The chasing pack is equally formidable. Borussia Dortmund and Manchester City both sit on seven points after unbeaten openings, while six-pointers include Barcelona, Newcastle United, Galatasaray and Qarabağ—clubs positioning themselves well for seeding battles as tiebreakers begin to matter.

Remember the format: the league-phase table ranks all 36 clubs together. Positions 1–8 advance directly to the Round of 16; places 9–24 go into the two-legged knockout play-offs; 25–36 are eliminated. With margins tight near the top, goal difference and head-to-head across the eight league-phase opponents will weigh heavily by January.

Real Madrid: Bellingham delivers, structure holds

Real Madrid’s 1–0 over Juventus hinged on a second-half surge. A sharp break saw the ball ricochet off the post before Jude Bellingham arrived to sweep home the winner shortly before the hour. The hosts managed the remaining phases with maturity: compact distances between midfield and back line, controlled pressing triggers on wide entries, and a premium on first contacts in their own box. Thibaut Courtois provided the safety net with key saves as Juventus chased late.

The broader takeaway is depth and flexibility. Madrid can build attacks through Kylian Mbappé’s gravity, Vinícius Júnior’s isolation threat, or Bellingham’s timing into the area—three distinct patterns that force defenses to choose what to deny. That variety is why a single goal can be enough; Madrid are increasingly comfortable protecting narrow leads on big European nights.

What the latest results tell us about the title race

• Efficiency travels. Liverpool’s five away in Frankfurt and Bayern’s clean, chance-heavy outing underline a theme of the round: top contenders are punishing in transitions and set plays, taking early control of xG and refusing to concede territory once ahead.

• Depth is separating contenders. Multi-goal wins from Chelsea and Bayern featured contributions beyond the headliners, a critical signal given the league-phase slog and domestic calendars.

• Clean sheets still matter. Inter and Arsenal remain perfect without conceding, and Real Madrid’s shutout illustrates why elite defenses are often the tiebreakers between seeds 1–8 and the play-off places.

Champions League: what’s next in the league phase

With three of eight league-phase matches complete, the board is set for a dense middle stretch in November and December. Leaders on nine points are hunting top-four seeding, while clubs in the 5–7 point band will eye swing fixtures against similarly placed opponents. Watch for tight matches where managers protect draws late—one point can be the difference between a direct Round-of-16 berth and the extra two-legged hurdle in February.