A stunning 3–2 victory over Benfica saw them recover from conceding twice in the opening 16 minutes to collect their first ever Champions League win outside of qualifying, even costing Bruno Lage his job in Lisbon. They followed up an almighty scalp with victory over Copenhagen, who struggled during their trek to Baku.

Claude Makelele was universally regarded as one of the greatest players of his generation following spells at Nantes, Marseille, Celta Vigo, Real Madrid, Chelsea and Paris Saint-Germain. He won the Champions League with Madrid in 2001-02 and believes Chelsea can challenge for European football's biggest prize this season.

We're halfway through the league phase of the UEFA Champions League! Which teams are thriving and which teams are struggling? Bill Connelly offers his stock watch, best XI and power rankings so far.

Bayern are more aggressive and better balanced than they've been in years. They also possess arguably the best striker in the world, Harry Kane, whose leadership and game-changing ability have led to 17 goals in 12 starts across the Bundesliga and Europe this season.

The Athletic analyses the state of play in Europe's premier club competition following the conclusion of the fourth round of fixtures

Alejandro Garnacho broke new ground for English clubs in the Champions League with his goal for Chelsea against Qarabag. The Argentina international came off the bench when his side were 2-1 down but grabbed a crucial equaliser soon after his introduction.

That’s another round of the Champions League league phase in the bank. There were a couple major upsets on Wednesday evening, as Qarabag FK earned a 2-2 draw against Chelsea, and Club Brugge held Barcelona to a point in a 3-3 draw with the Catalan giants.

Manchester United Women have had a highly impressive start to the season.Impressive startThey have won five out of seven Women Super League games and sit two points behind leaders Chelsea.Marc