IFFHS CONTINENTAL NEWS - MEN'S UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE
Picture : Fermín López has become the first Spanish player to score a hat-trick for Barcelona in the history of the Champions League (since 1992).
Champions League statistics: league stage, round 3 (October 21)
*The 43 goals scored across the 9 Champions League games tonight is the second-highest average (4.8) on a single day in the competition (minimum 4 games), after this exact day 9 years ago (40 goals in 8 games on 21 October 2014).
Barcelona vs Olympiakos 6-1
*Barcelona fielded their third youngest starting lineup (23 years 214 days average) for a Champions League match, after the games vs Club Brugge (22 years 362 days) in October 2002 and vs BATE Borisov (23 years 93 days) in December 2011.
The 27-year-old Marcus Rashford was their oldest outfielder.
*Barcelona have scored 6 goals in a European competition game for the first time since the second leg of the UCL round of 16 in March 2017 against Paris Saint-Germain (6-1).
*Barcelona have scored in 23 consecutive Champions League matches: their second-longest scoring run in the competition after Pep Guardiola's 29-game streak from 2009 to 2012.
*Fermín López has become the first Spanish player to score a hat-trick for Barcelona in the history of the Champions League (since 1992).
In other European competitions, the last to do so was Luis Enrique against AEK in the 2000-01 UEFA Cup; in European Cup before 1992, Pichi Alonso against Götheborg.
The last Spanish player to score a hat-trick in the UCL was Lucas Pérez, for Arsenal against Basel in December 2016.
*Lamine Yamal became the second youngest player (at the age of 18 years 100 days) to score a penalty in UCL, after another Barcelona teenager Bojan Krkić did it against Sporting in November 2008 at 18 years 90 days.
*Barcelona’s Dro Fernández became the second youngest player (at 17 years 282 days) to provide an assist on his Champions League debut, behind only Giovanni Reyna with Borussia Dortmund in February 2020 (at 17 years 97 days).
*Two players under the age of 19 (Lamine Yamal and Dro Fernández) have assisted in the same Champions League game for the second time in history; the first such case was in April 1995 (Nwankwo Kanu and Patrick Kluivert with Ajax against Bayern Munich).
*Yamal became the first ever player to reach 25 appearances before the age of 19 in Champions League history.
Warren Zaïre-Emery has playes his 25th game at 19 years 32 days,
Cesc Fàbregas at 19 years 292 days,
Anderson Oliveira at 19 years 326 days.
*Olympiakos have conceded 6+ goals in a European Cup/Champions League match for the second time in their history, after the one against Juventus on 10 December 2003 (7).
Newcastle vs Benfica 3-0
*Newcastle have won back-to-back Champions League games for the first time since February 2003.
*Anthony Gordon becomes the first Newcastle player to score in three consecutive matches in the competition.
Arsenal vs Atlético Madrid 4-0
*Arsenal became the first team in Champions League history to win 7 consecutive games against Spanish opposition (Real Madrid and Sevilla twice, Girona, Athletic Bilbao and now Atlético Madrid once each).
*Atlético Madrid have conceded three goals in space of just six minutes (from 64th to 70th) for the first time in a Champions League match.
*Atlético Madrid repeated for the 7th time their heaviest defeat in Europe (always with 4-goal margin). The precedents:
15/05/1963: 1-5 vs Tottenham
17/05/1974: 0-4 vs Bayern
21/10/2009: 0-4 vs Chelsea
24/10/2018: 0-4 vs Borussia Dortmund
21/10/2020: 0-4 vs Bayern
02/10/2024: 0-4 vs Benfica
Kairat vs Pafos 0-0
*Cape Verdean João Correia (Pafos) got a red card at already 3 minutes 2 seconds, for a foul committed at 2 minutes 44 seconds.
It is the second-earliest red card in Champions League history, behind only the straight red card (at 2 minutes 37 seconds) given to Olexandr Kucher (Shakhtar) against Bayern in 2015.
Copenhagen vs Borussia Dortmund 2-4
*Dortmund’s coach Niko Kovac remains unbeaten in his 12th game in charge in the group/league phase of the Champions League (9 wins, 3 draws), a feat previously achieved in the competition only by Louis van Gaal (unbeaten in his first 13 games) and Fabio Capello (in first 12).
*Felix Nmecha is the first Dortmund player to score twice from outside the box in a Champions League match.
PSV Eindhoven vs Napoli 6-2
*Napoli became the first team in Europe's top five leagues to concede 6+ goals on Dutch soil in the entire history of European competitions.
*Napoli are the first Italian club to concede 6+ goals in a UCL match since Roma beaten by Barcelona 6-1 in 2015.
*Napoli have conceded 6 goals in a European competitionfor the first time.
Overall, they last suffered 6+ goals in a single match of any competition on 21 December 1997 (3-6 against Sampdoria in Serie A).
*PSV are the first Dutch side to score 6+ goals in a single Champions League/European Cup game since Ajax in October 1979 (10-0 vs Omonia Nicosia).
Union Saint-Gilloise vs Inter 0-4
*Inter have won an away game by a margin of 4+ goals in a European competition for the second time in their history, after 5-1 win against Valencia on 20 October 2004.
*Lautaro Martínez has scored 11 goals in the Champions League in 2025, more than any other player in the competition in this period.
Villarreal vs Manchester City 0-2
*Erling Haaland has scored in each of his last 9 games in all competitions for Manchester City.
Only between August and October 2022, he had a longer run (10 games) in his top-flight club career.
Overall, for club and country, his scoring run is extended to 12 games.
*Haaland has scored no fewer than 24 goals in 14 games this season:
15 goals in 11 games for Manchester City,
9 goals in 3 games for Norway.