Erling Haaland after Manchester City’s win over Porto (Picture: Amazon) Erling Haaland believes Manchester City have found a new weapon as they look to dethrone Premier League champions Arsenal. Man City began their Champions League campaign with an impressive 2-0 win over Portuguese giants Porto. After a goalless first half, prolific goalscorer Haaland gave Man City the lead with a 47th-minute header. The Norwegian superstar put the game to bed with City’s second in injury time, taking his tally for the club to 36 Champions League goals in only 40 appearances. Exclusive Premier League previews Get ahead of the start of the season with our weekly football newsletter. Sign up now for free. Haaland’s form was not the only promising sign for Manchester City, with Enzo Fernandez impressing following his £125m move from Chelsea and £86m signing Ayyoub Bouaddi thriving on his first start for the club. Man City’s midfield was weekended by Rodri’s £65m move to Barcelona but Etihad bosses appear to have signed well in Fernandez and Bouaddi. Morocco international Bouaddi only joined City two weeks ago but has already impressed Haaland, who described him as a ‘gem’ and revealed he had told decision-makers at the club that he looked ‘amazing’ in training. Manchester City’s £86m signing Ayyoub Bouaddi (Picture: Getty) ‘I think he played a very good game,’ Haaland said of 18-year-old Bouaddi, who was linked with several Premier League clubs before joining Man City. ‘Last couple of weeks in training, I told the chairman that he has been amazing, so I think we have a gem here. ‘But to be honest, I think he should of played me through in the second half when I was all alone. I was a bit angry, so I will tell him right now, he played a good game, except that pass!’ Haaland scored twice against Porto (Picture: Getty) Manchester City boss Enzo Maresca also praised Bouaddi, describing his performance against Porto as ‘unbelievable’. ‘The good thing is that from Erling [Haaland], Ruben [Dias], Mateo [Kovacic] you expect how to manage this game but Ayyoub was never in panic,’ Maresca told Amazon Prime. ‘He was very good and I think the performance was unbelievable.’ Erling Haaland reacts to Man City's win in Porto 🗣️Still a few bits to learn for new signing Ayyoub Bouaddi 😅 pic.twitter.com/bbAeD1y905— Prime Video Sport UK (@primevideosport) September 8, 2026 Discussing Man City’s win more generally, ex-Chelsea manager Maresca added: ‘I think we could’ve scored more goals, especially in the first half but overall I think we deserved to win the game. ‘We created enough chances to win the game. We didn’t concede a lot. It’s normal to come here and concede some chances because it’s normal, so overall happy with the performance. ‘I think I am lucky because all the squad is good players, for a manager it is easy because you can give minutes to all of them, and tonight I think the guys that were inside were very good.’ Haaland was also pleased with City’s display out in Portugal, saying: ‘It was a difficult fight, man against man. They are a top team, honestly they are impressive. ‘They play amazing football so well done to them, but with all the pressure [on us] we had to deliver on the biggest stage. That’s what we did today.’ Manchester City suffered a deflating 3-0 defeat to Arsenal in the Community Shield last month but have not put a foot wrong since the season started. City will look to maintain their perfect start to the Premier League campaign on Sunday when they make the short trip to Old Trafford to face rivals Manchester United. For more stories like this, check our sport page. Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Comment now Comments Add Metro as a Preferred Source on Google Add as preferred source
That was because of the air traffic control issues in the UK, with planes at most major UK airports grounded on Tuesday following a 'technical failure'.
Vinicius Junior during Real Madrid’s win over Inter Milan (Picture: Getty) Steve McManaman claims Real Madrid fans turned on Vinicius Junior during their hard-fought Champions League win over Inter Milan. Jose Mourinho’s side kick-started their Champions League campaign with a 2-1 win over Serie A champions Inter on Tuesday night. Real Madrid were far from at their best but took control in the first-half through goals from Kylian Mbappe and Federico Valverde. Inter Milan dominated possession throughout the match and Madrid’s lack of control caused huge tension inside the Bernabeu. Exclusive Premier League previews Get ahead of the start of the season with our weekly football newsletter. Sign up now for free. The whistles from the home fans grew louder and louder as Real Madrid failed to put the game to bed and McManaman felt some of the anger was directed at Vinicius. The Brazilian winger has endured a slow start to the new season after a summer in which he was heavily linked with a move to Premier League champions Arsenal. ‘You can hear the whistles at Vinicius Junior,’ former Real Madrid midfielder McManaman said on TNT Sports after the 26-year-old gave the ball away in the second half. Real Madrid beat Inter Milan 2-1 at the Bernabeu (Picture: Getty) ‘Listen to that… they are not happy with Vini Junior at all. He certainly has a love-hate relationship with the fans.’ The frustration inside the Bernabeu only increased when Inter Milan pulled a goal back on 77 minutes through Carlos Augusto. Inter then hit the woodwork as they chased an equaliser but ultimately returned to Italy empty-handed, with Madrid beginning their Champions League campaign with a narrow win. Jose Mourinho during Madrid’s European win (Picture: Getty) Vinicius’ late substitution was met by a mixed reaction by the Madrid fans but Mourinho made a point of applauding the Brazilian as he made his way off the pitch. Asked about Vinicius’ performance after the game, Mourinho said: ‘He worked hard – incredibly hard. ‘I know it, we all know it, and he knows it – he isn’t quite sharp yet – he isn’t quite ‘Vinicius’ yet –but he works hard, and anyone who works hard and gives their all deserves respect.’ Full-time scenes at the Bernabeu as Real Madrid get their Champions League campaign off to a winning start! 👏📺 Watch live on TNT Sports & HBO Max pic.twitter.com/CsUfcz29sg— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) September 8, 2026 Discussing Real Madrid’s win more generally, Mourinho added: ‘I prefer to call this a crazy match – generally, there’s so much criticism when a game is boring, but today it was crazy – it could easily have ended 7-6. ‘We had a depleted midfield, Inter made substitutions very early on, and I didn’t have many options for midfield. ‘I made changes when I saw the players were struggling, but I think they did a great job. It certainly wasn’t boring. ‘We had the chance to make it 3-0 in the final minute of the first half. I want to give credit to my players because pressing is something you train for and [Federico] Valverde’s goal is the result of hard work. ‘It’s one thing that neither you nor they have control of the match – and I’d say our opponent didn’t have it either. ‘[Thibaut] Courtois made a lot of saves, but how many chances did we miss in transition? It was a great match.’ Next up for Real Madrid in the Champions League are RB Leipzig, while Inter Milan will look to bounce back against Club Brugge. For more stories like this, check our sport page. Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Comment now Comments Add Metro as a Preferred Source on Google Add as preferred source
Tap a headline to view metadata and excerpt fields in Sportra, then use the article website button to continue on the original publisher page.
.jpeg?width=1200&auto=webp&crop=3%3A2)