AEK give Madrid a fright

Real Madrid CF had to battle back from 3-1 down to secure a point against AEK Athens FC while there were goals galore for Liverpool FC and Valencia CF on Matchday Three last night.

Tsartas first
Defending champions Madrid drew 3-3 with AEK, but were twice behind against the Greek side. Vassilios Tsartas became the first player to score against the Spanish side in this season's competition with a sixth-minute free-kick. However, Madrid were soon back on level terms thanks to Zinedine Zidane's goal after 15 minutes before further goals from Christos Maladenis and Themistoklis Nikolaidis put the hosts in the driving seat. However, another Zidane strike and a second-half Guti goal ensured Madrid left with a point.

Moons off
The other Group C match had plenty of drama too, but of a different kind as AS Roma were made to work hard for a 1-0 victory at KRC Genk. After just ten minutes, Genk had goalkeeper Jan Moons sent off for a deliberate handball outside the box as Francesco Totti raced through for the Italian team. However, Roma had to wait until the 81st minute to make their numerical advantage tell courtesy of Antonio Cassano's long-range header.

Six for Valencia
There was plenty of action in Group B. Valencia made it three wins from three with a 6-2 home victory against FC Basel. Two goals in three minutes from John Carew along with efforts from Fábio Aurélio and Rubén Baraja put the Spanish champions in a commanding position at half-time before Pablo Aimar and Mista put the game beyond doubt. Basel duo Julio Hernán Rossi and Hakan Yakin gave the scoreline some respectability. Liverpool were also in fine form at home, winning 5-0 against FC Spartak Moskva. First-half goals from Emile Heskey, Bruno Cheyrou and Sami Hyypiä did the damage before Salif Diao and Heskey again sealed the rout in the second half.

Govou goal
There was a major shock in Group D as previously unbeaten Internazionale FC went down 2-1 at home to Olympique Lyonnais. Goals in either half from Sidney Govou and Sonny Anderson stunned the San Siro and rendered Fabio Cannavaro's 73rd-minute goal meaningless. The other game in the group, Rosenborg BK and AFC Ajax in Trondheim, finished goalless to leave Lyon topping the pile.

Koller strike
In Group A, Liverpool's English rivals Arsenal FC kept up their 100 per cent record with a 1-0 victory at AJ Auxerre. Brazil midfield player Gilberto scored the only goal early in the second half just before Thierry Henry limped out of the action. The other game in the group saw PSV Eindhoven lose 3-1 at home against German champions BV Borussia Dortmund. Jan Koller, Tomáš Rosický and Marcio Amoroso ensured an impressive win and back-to-back defeats for PSV, who will take little comfort from a stunning second-half consolation goal by Remco van der Schaaf.