UCL: Man City and Chelsea suffer big defeats whilst Arsenal draw

Manchester City and Chelsea were beaten heavily their first-leg knockout ties in the Champions League whilst Arsenal were held by Bayer Leverkusen.

City were left stunned by a Federico Valverde hat-trick, Chelsea were thrashed in Paris and Arsenal were saved by a late Kai Havertz spot kick.

Pep Guardiola’s side were left shell‑shocked as a ruthless Real Madrid tore them apart in the opening half of the Champions League Round of 16 first-leg.

The star of the night was Valverde, who scored all three goals before half-time to claim a remarkable hat‑trick.

His first came after just 20 minutes when he capitalised on a long ball, controlled it superbly and rounded goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma before slotting home.

Seven minutes later he was in again, pouncing on a deflected pass to drill a low left‑footed strike beyond the keeper to make it 2–0. He then completed his hat-trick in the 42nd minute, cleverly guiding a chipped pass over Marc Guehi and volleying home to seal an emphatic lead.

City struggled to create any real threat going forward throughout the game, despite enjoying good possession, and rarely troubled the Madrid defence.

Antoine Semenyo was one of the few to test Real’s goalkeeper in the second half with a chance, but his low shot was comfortably saved by Thibaut Courtois. Meanwhile, Erling Haaland was largely ineffective for most of the match, unable to impose himself on a disjointed attack.

With such a convincing victory in the first-leg, City now face a mountain to climb when the tie returns to the Etihad Stadium for the second-leg, where they will have to overturn this three‑goal deficit if they are to reach the Champions League quarter‑finals.

On the same night that Real Madrid dismantled Manchester City, Paris Saint‑Germain put on a dominant display to beat Chelsea 5–2 at the Parc des Princes.

Like City’s defeat, Chelsea were cut down by a three‑goal margin, though in this case the scoreline was even more emphatic thanks to a relentless PSG attack that left the Blues with plenty to do ahead of the second-leg.

PSG struck early when Bradley Barcola gave the hosts the lead inside the first 10 minutes, finishing coolly after being played in by Joao Neves’ header.

Chelsea responded well and drew level through Malo Gusto’s low finish in the 28th minute, and although PSG went back in front shortly before half‑time through Ousmane Dembele, the visitors battled back again early in the second half with Enzo Fernandez finding the net to make it 2–2.

However, PSG’s firepower in attacking areas proved too much for the Blue’s in the second half.

Vitinha capitalised on a mistake from Chelsea goalkeeper Filip Jorgensen to restore the lead for the French champions in the 74th minute with a deft lob over the goalkeeper.

Substitute Khvicha Kvaratskhelia then added two late goals for the hosts, his first a curling strike in the 86th minute and his second a composed finish deep into stoppage time to complete the scoring.

The result leaves PSG comfortably in control of the tie, while Chelsea face a significant task to overturn the three‑goal deficit when the teams meet again at Stamford Bridge in the second-leg.

Despite producing arguably the strongest result of the night among the English clubs, Arsenal went into their Champions League last‑16 first‑leg tie with Bayer Leverkusen as clear favourites.

Mikel Arteta’s side had won all eight of their Champions League league phase games and finished top of the table, giving them a strong run of form and confidence heading into the match.

However, in the first half Arsenal struggled to find their rhythm as the hosts put pressure on them right from the off with David Raya called to action on multiple occasions.

The teams went into the break level but it was Leverkusen who came out flying again and stunned Arsenal just a minute into the second half.

The Gunners shockingly conceded from a corner, uncharacteristic for a side that are known for their defending of set-pieces. Alejandro Grimaldo delivered an in-swinging corner from the right to the far post, where Robert Andrich was left unmarked and headed powerfully home past Raya to give the hosts the lead.

After going behind, Arsenal probed forward and showed patience in their attacking play, trying to unlock the Leverkusen defence.

Their persistence eventually paid off late on, as they had to wait until the 89th minute to draw level when Noni Madueke was fouled in the box resulting in a penalty.

Kai Havertz, the former Leverkusen man coolly rolled the resulting penalty into the corner to make it 1–1, putting Arsenal level as they go into the second-leg.