Champions League: Arsenal triumphs over Lille, Barcelona impresses, Bayern thwarted.

Oct 13, 2026

After a long period on the defensive, Lille finally succumbed to Arsenal's onslaught in the second half, losing 3-0. Meanwhile, FC Barcelona, trailing in Turkey, managed to turn the game around against Galatasaray, winning 4-1, while Bayern Munich was held to a surprising 3-3 draw by Viking Stavanger.

Published on: 13/10/2026 - 22:58

3 min Reading time

The first half was solid for Lille, not exceptional, but enough to frustrate the dominant yet ineffective Gunners, who played without pressure on their opponents. However, the red waves began to crash down immediately after the break. Coach Mikel Arteta had to shake up his players at halftime to awaken the team and restore Arsenal's intense style of play. The absence of Bukayo Saka, Martin Ødegaard, and Kai Havertz, who remained on the bench, did not explain the lethargy of the London club, as the Gunners eventually began to unleash their power, suffocating Lille until they cracked.

It was Timber, the right-back who significantly exceeded his role, who opened the scoring like a center-forward: a controlled run and a lobbed shot to finish (64th minute). Barely three minutes after the trio of Saka, Ødegaard, and Havertz entered, the Dogues conceded again, this time from Eberechi Eze (67th), well assisted by Saka. The English international dealt the final blow to Lille, almost single-handedly setting up the third goal and leaving the northern club on the canvas.

The only small consolation for Lille was the introduction of Olivier Giroud, back at the Emirates, who was cheered by his former supporters. The 40-year-old international played the last 13 minutes of the match.

In other matches, big clubs faced difficulties. Bayern Munich was notably down 2-0 against Norwegian side Viking Stavanger in the first half. The Bavarians limited the damage after believing they could win the match. Harry Kane sparked the comeback with a brace in the first quarter of an hour of the second half (54th, 60th), followed by Luis Díaz, who thought he had secured the win against the Norwegians (71st). However, the dismissal of Frenchman Michaël Olise (74th) reignited the underdogs, who equalized through Haugen (90th).

FC Barcelona also faced scares in Turkey after conceding the first goal to Batrakov (28th). However, the Blaugrana ruthlessly woke up, overturning the Istanbul side thanks to goals from Cancelo (43rd), López (50th), Gordon (53rd), and Adeyemi (65th).

On the other hand, Inter Milan is struggling. After being defeated by Real Madrid on the opening day, the Italian club was shocked at home by Belgian side Club Brugge (4-3).