Liverpool snatch win, Messi breaks hat-trick record in Champions League

Liverpool have snatched victory in their opening match of the Champions League, with Roberto Firmino striking a stoppage-time winner to see them beat Paris Saint-Germain 3-2 at Anfield.

Spurs got their campaign off to a poor start, losing to Inter Milan, while Lionel Messi starred for Barcelona in their Group B opener against PSV Eindhoven.

Anfield played host to some memorable matches in this competition last season as Liverpool marched towards a losing final appearance against Real Madrid, and the first match of the current group stage proved to be another electric night of entertainment.

Jurgen Klopp, right, celebrates his side's last-gasp win.

Jurgen Klopp, right, celebrates his side’s last-gasp win.

PSG had come back from two goals down and Kylian Mbappe looked to have secured a point for the French side in a compelling Group C clash, equalising in the 83rd minute. But Firmino, who started on the bench due to an eye injury, drilled home a low shot in the final seconds.

It was a deserved victory for Jurgen Klopp's team, who had been on top for most of the match and handled the sport's most expensively-assembled frontline with some confidence.

Yet it was agonising for PSG, who had looked buried in the first half but showed character to claw themselves back on level terms.

Daniel Sturridge, who had not started a Champions League game since his days with Chelsea in 2012, was given the nod to replace Firmino in attack and the English striker responded superbly.

With Anfield in loud and proud mood, Liverpool came roaring out and put Thomas Tuchel’s side under intense pressure from the outset.

It was Sturridge who opened the scoring in the 30th minute with a fine header from an Andy Robertson cross, the striker getting in between Thiago Silva and Presnel Kimpembe and powering home his effort.

Six minutes later the Reds doubled their lead when PSG defender Juan Bernat tripped Georginio Wijnaldum in the area and James Milner slotted home the penalty.

The Parisians got themselves back into the game though five minutes before the break when Robertson, who had been outstanding in restricting Mbappe, failed to clear and Thomas Meunier drove home a first-time effort.

Liverpool thought they had a third after the break when Mohamed Salah had the ball in the net but the effort was ruled out by referee Cuneyt Cakır who correctly ruled that Sturridge had fouled Areola when the pair scrapped for a loose ball.

Even at 2-1 Liverpool looked comfortably in charge but with seven minutes to go, Salah carelessly gave the ball away in his own half, Neymar ran towards the home defence and the ball fell to the 19-year-old Mbappe, who drove home with supreme confidence.

Just as the home crowd were reconciling themselves to two dropped points, Firmino showed he could match the Frenchman for clinical finishing, eking out just enough space for a drilled, diagonal shot which sent Anfield into ecstasy.

Elsewhere, Inter Milan staged a late smash-and-grab raid as goals by skipper Mauro Icardi and Matias Vecino secured a 2-1 home win over Tottenham on their long-awaited return to the competition.

Mauro Icardi got on the scoresheet for Inter.

Mauro Icardi got on the scoresheet for Inter.

Spurs appeared to have delivered the perfect response to their stuttering domestic form as they led through Christian Eriksen's deflected 53rd-minute strike.

Inter, who have started poorly in Serie A, were offering little threat but Icardi's superb 86th-minute volley brought the San Siro to life and Vecino's stoppage-time header left Tottenham crestfallen at the final whistle.

The late twist condemned Spurs to a third consecutive defeat for the first time in Mauricio Pochettino's four-year reign.

"I'm happy with the performance but annoyed because I think the players and team deserved more," the Argentine said.

With group leaders Barcelona, 4-0 winners at home to PSV Eindhoven, looming for Spurs in their next Champions League fixture at Wembley Stadium, the London side's hopes of emerging from a tough group are already in peril.

The 2010 champions Inter, on the other hand, will hope the victory acts as a spark after they picked up only four points in their opening four domestic league games and suffered a home defeat by promoted Parma at the weekend.

In the other Group B match, Messi scored three times in his side's big win over PSV.

The Argentine pierced a hole in the stubborn Dutch champions with an exquisitely struck free kick in the first half, then produced two ruthless finishes from inside the area late on to complete a record eighth treble in Europe's top competition.

Hat-trick hero: Lionel Messi.

Hat-trick hero: Lionel Messi.

"Messi does extraordinary things and makes them look routine," Barca coach Ernesto Valverde said.

"When he stops playing it will be difficult to find someone like him. It's a relief to have him on your team and a nightmare to have him against you."

"Today he scored three goals but his first strike opened the game up. It was a magisterial free kick," Valverde added.

"We have to pinch ourselves to remind us that we are living through a unique era."

Even PSV coach Mark van Bommel lauded the five-times world player of the year, saying: "For me he is the best player in the world. It's strange to me that he does not win the Ballon d'Or every single year."

Barca goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen added: "Messi always delivers. There's no player that does that quite like him. He's always ready and he's always decisive. But we have 10 other players who also contributed to the victory."

In other results, Red Star Belgrade ground out a 0-0 home draw against Napoli on the Serbian side's Champions League debut, Atletico Madrid battled their way back from a goal down for a 2-1 win at Monaco in Group A, Borussia Dortmund’s Christian Pulisic came off the bench to grab a late winner in a 1-0 victory at Club Brugge, Galatasaray returned to the competition by beating Lokomotiv Moscow 3-0 in Group D and Schalke marked their return to the competition after a three-year absence with a 1-1 draw at home to Porto.

Reuters

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