By Kayode John
Victor Olatunji made history in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday night by becoming the third African to score and assist on his debut in the competition and the first Nigerian to achieve such feat.
He achieved the milestone for Sparta Prague as they beat Salzburg 3-0 in Prague.
Sparta Prague grabbed the opening goal when Lukas Haraslin’s shot ricocheted off the back of the Salzburg goalkeeper into the path of Kaan Kairinen, who poked the ball home.
Filip Panak’s precise pass found Olatunji inside the box and he fired a first-time effort past the goalkeeper into the left post. In the 58th minute, the 25-year-old became the provider when he found Qazim Laci who brilliantly beat the goalkeeper in a one-the-one situation before tucking the ball home.
In the biggest game of the night at the Etihad Stadium, Manchester City were held to a 0-0 draw by Inter Milan in a frustrating start to their Champions League campaign. Kevin De Bruyne came off following a knock just before half-time.
There was none of the tension of the last time the teams met in the 2023 final as City struggled to break down an impressive Inter side who troubled them on numerous occasions. Phil Foden and Ilkay Gundogan went close late on but Inter would be the happier side.
Paris Saint-Germain were grateful to a last-minute howler from goalkeeper, Paulo Gazzaniga, as they snatched a 1-0 win over debutants, Girona, in their opening game of the competition.
PSG had over 60 percent possession and 24 attempts on goal and looked set to be frustrated by their opponents at the Parc des Princes, until a low Nuno Mendes cross squeezed under Gazzaniga into the net in the 90th minute.
Super Eagles midfielder, Raphael Onyedika, was in action for 90 minutes for Club Brugge but last season’s finalists, Borussia Dortmund, showed class with a 3-0 victory in Belgium.
Onyedika was close to scoring his first goal in the competition in the 12th minute. The Nigeria international pounced on a loose ball in the Dortmund box but could only force a good save from keeper, Gregor Kobel.
A brace from substitute, Jamie Jermaine Bynoe-Gittens, and a penalty by Serhou Guirassy won the game for the visitors.
Scottish champions, Celtic, ran riot over their visitors, Slovan Bratislava, with a 5-1 victory at Celtic Park.
Liam Scales opened the scoring after just 17 minutes, and a wave of goals followed through Kyogo Furuhashi, Arne Engels, Daizen Maeda and Adam Idah. Kevin Wimmer scored the consolation for his club in the 60th minute.
Bologna began their Champions League adventure with a 0-0 home draw against Shakhtar Donetsk. Lukasz Skorupski saved an early Georgiy Sudakov penalty to ensure the Italian side avoided a defeat.
Bologna are in Europe for the first time since the 2002 Intertoto Cup Final, while their only previous European Cup experience was in 1964.
Results
Sparta Praha 3-0 RB Salzburg
Manchester City 0-0 Inter Milan
Paris Saint-Germain 1-0 Girona
Club Brugge 0-3 Borussia Dortmund
Celtic 5-1 Slovan Bratislava
Bologna 0-0 Shakhtar Donetsk
