Sparta Beat Salzburg, Bologna Draw with Shakhtar in Champions League

In their return to the Champions League, Sparta Prague and Bologna both delivered noteworthy performances against established European teams on Wednesday.

Sparta Prague, making their first appearance in the Champions League in 19 years, secured a 3-0 victory over Salzburg. The Czech team took an early lead with Kaan Kairinen scoring just 108 seconds into the match. Victor Olatunji extended the lead in the 42nd minute with a precise shot from a tight angle, and Qazim Laçi added a third goal in the 58th minute. This defeat marks a challenging start for Salzburg coach Pep Lijnders, who joined the team after his tenure as an assistant at Liverpool.

In Italy, Bologna managed to hold Shakhtar Donetsk to a 0-0 draw. This was Bologna's first Champions League match since 1964, when the tournament was known as the European Cup and limited to national champions. Bologna's goalkeeper Lukasz Skorupski made a crucial save in the fourth minute, stopping a penalty kick from Shakhtar's Heorhiy Sudakov. Despite 18 attempts on goal by Bologna, Shakhtar's goalkeeper Dmytro Riznyk kept the match level with multiple key saves.

Wednesday's matches were part of the new Champions League format, which features 36 teams playing eight different opponents through January, with standings determining which teams progress to the knockout stages. Later in the evening, Manchester City hosted Inter Milan in a repeat of the 2023 final, which City won.