Champions League: Eintracht Frankfurt dismantles Galatasaray

"It was amazing, simply perfect," said a delighted Jonathan Burkardt after his successful Champions League debut. The Eintracht Frankfurt striker scored his first two goals for his new club in the 5-1 win against Galatasaray Istanbul. "It felt really good. I'm very grateful and happy," he said.

Overall, Frankfurt's first appearance in Europe's premier football league was a successful evening. After falling behind early, Eintracht Frankfurt came back strongly and turned the game around.

"It was a nervous start, and we were a bit sloppy," Burkardt admitted. "The way we then improved and came back from a 1-0 deficit to win 5-1 in front of that crowd is simply incredible. It was perfect tonight."

Naturally, the two Germans on Galatasaray's side saw things differently. "We made very simple mistakes," said former international Ilkay Gündogan in a television interview after the match. "Overall, it wasn't good enough."

His teammate Leroy Sané set up the opening goal for Istanbul and had several good opportunities afterward. However, he failed to score himself until he was substituted after 67 minutes.

Bayer Leverkusen with problems in Copenhagen

Bayer Leverkusen's away match against FC Copenhagen wasn't exactly the kind of football fest coach Kasper Hjulmand had hoped for. The Werkself struggled for a long time and twice fell behind. Only shortly before the final whistle did an own goal by the Danes bring the final score to 2-2.

"We didn't play with the right discipline," Hjulmand explained after his return to Copenhagen, criticizing the defense in particular. "Counter-pressing is always very, very important. The defensive runs always have to be good, and I wasn't satisfied with that," he said.

At least the runner-up once again showed character, equalizing twice and thus avoiding a false start.

FC Bayern wins opening match against Chelsea

For Bayern Munich , on the other hand, things were essentially normal: Harry Kane scored and the Munich team won. Nevertheless, the 3-1 victory against Chelsea on Wednesday evening was anything but ordinary. Rather, the German champions made a statement with their victory against the Club World Cup winners .

"It was a strong performance against a very good opponent. It was a difficult game, we are very relieved," said Kane, who scored twice in a TV interview after the match and called the 3-1 win "a great result."

Before kickoff , Bayern Munich's honorary president Uli Hoeneß had projected his club as an outsider in the Champions League due to the financial superiority of other European clubs such as Real Madrid, Paris St. Germain, Manchester City, Liverpool, and Chelsea. Munich coach Vincent Kompany, on the other hand, confidently declared the title as their goal.

"The boys not only did their jobs, but also showed enthusiasm for the game," said the Belgian after the match. "We very deserved to win."

Manuel Neuer celebrates 100th victory

Bayern Munich's goalkeeper and captain Manuel Neuer was also pleased. The former national team keeper achieved his 100th victory in his 151st Champions League match. He is only the fourth player to reach this milestone, following Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo, his long-time Bayern colleague Thomas Müller , and Spanish goalkeeper Iker Casillas.

"It's a nice number," Neuer said, remaining modest. "It's much more important to have won these victories with the team."

Borussia Dortmund squanders victory against Juventus

Borussia Dortmund would have also hoped for a win, and BVB actually looked like the sure winners against Juventus Turin on Tuesday evening – until things changed. Although Dortmund went into stoppage time with a 4-2 lead, the Italian record champions equalized with goals in the 94th and 96th minutes.

What was particularly annoying was that Dortmund practically invited their already beaten opponent to score goals with easy ball losses and a too casual demeanor.

"Mistakes will be punished, even more so at this level than usual. We have to be aware of that," said angrily BVB goalkeeper Gregor Kobel. "It's about simply being aware of the danger, what can happen, because they have quality, and it can happen quickly."

Surprisingly, the officials sounded less dissatisfied. "Even if it sounds a bit skewed after the last few minutes, I'm satisfied with the team's performance," said Dortmund sporting director Sebastian Kehl. "We did a lot of things really well."

Coach Niko Kovac also praised his team for a "great performance" and felt that only the final two minutes marred the positive impression. "We would have normally finished it differently. We didn't, and that's the annoying thing. But regardless, I still maintain: It was a very, very mature team performance up until the 94th minute."

Games with German participation:

Bayern Munich - Chelsea 3:1 (2:1) Goals: 1-0 Chalobah (20'/own goal), 2-0 Kane (27'/penalty), 2-1 Palmer (29'), 3-1 Kane (63')

Juventus Turin - Borussia Dortmund 4:4 (0:0) Goals: 0:1 Adeyemi (52'), 1:1 Yildiz (63'), 1:2 F. Nmecha (65'), 2:2 Vlahovic (68'), 2:3 Couto (74'), 2:4 Bensebaini (86'/hand penalty), 3:4 Vlahovic (90'+4), 4:4 Kelly (90'+6)

FC Copenhagen - Bayer Leverkusen 2:2 (1:0) Goals: 1-0 J. Larsson (9th), 1-1 Grimaldo (82nd), 2-1 Robert (87th), 2-2 Hatzidiakos (90th+2/own goal)

Eintracht Frankfurt - Galatasaray Istanbul 5:1 (3:1) Goals: 0:1 Akgün (8'), 1:1 D. Sánchez (37'/own goal), 2:1 Uzun (45'+2), 3:1 Burkardt (45'+5), 4:1 Burkardt (66'), 5:1 Knauff (75')

The remaining results of the first matchday:

Athletic Bilbao - Arsenal FC 0:2 (0:0)

PSV Eindhoven - Union St. Gilloise 1:3 (0:2)

Real Madrid - Olympique Marseille 2:1 (1:1)

Benfica Lisbon - FK Karabakh Agdam 2:3 (2:1)

Tottenham Hotspur - Villarreal FC 1:0 (1:0)

Slavia Prague - FK Bodö/Glimt 2:2 (1:0)

Olympiacos Piraeus - Pafos FC 0:0

Ajax Amsterdam - Inter Milan 0:2 (0:1)

Liverpool FC - Atlético Madrid 3:2 (2:1)

Paris Saint-Germain - Atalanta Bergamo 4:0 (2:0)

FC Brugge - AS Monaco 4:1 (3:0)

Sporting Lisbon - Qairat Almaty 4:1 (1:0)

Newcastle United - FC Barcelona 1:2 (0:0)

Manchester City - SSC Napoli 2:0 (0:0)