Fenerbahce end Liverpool’s perfect Champions League start with late Istanbul winner

Liverpool’s perfect start to this season’s Champions League ended with a 3-2 defeat by Fenerbahce in Istanbul, where the Turkish side recovered from two deficits before scoring a late winner. The result also gave Liverpool back-to-back defeats in all competitions after their Premier League loss to Arsenal on Sunday. The match was marked by repeated reversals.

Trey Nyoni put Liverpool ahead, but former Manchester United striker Mason Greenwood equalised for Fenerbahce. Alexander Isak restored the visitors’ lead in the second half before Archie Brown levelled again. Vedat Muriqi then scored in the 89th minute to complete Fenerbahce’s comeback.

Liverpool had twice held the advantage but could not protect it in the closing stages, allowing their hosts to claim a result that ended the English club’s 100 per cent record in the competition. Liverpool coach Andoni Iraola attributed the defeat to set pieces. He said his team conceded from a free-kick, a corner and a long throw, all areas he identified as Fenerbahce strengths before the match.

His assessment, reported by France 24, focused on defensive execution rather than a lack of opportunities in open play. The defeat came on a difficult week for Liverpool, who had also lost to Arsenal in the Premier League. The reports supplied did not give the match’s wider league-phase standings, but they established that Liverpool’s winning run in Europe had ended in Istanbul.

Elsewhere, Real Madrid preserved their perfect Champions League record with a 3-2 comeback win over AEK Athens in Greece. Madrid twice fell behind before Federico Valverde struck from long range in the second minute of stoppage time. AEK took the lead through Aboubakary Koita in the first half, but Jude Bellingham equalised with a backheel finish.

Stavros Pilios restored the home side’s advantage in the 75th minute, only for Kylian Mbappe to level three minutes later. Valverde’s late goal completed Madrid’s recovery. The result extended Madrid’s run of dramatic finishes in the competition.

France 24 reported that they had also scored three goals in the final 10 minutes of a 4-3 win over Roma the previous month, including a 90th-minute winner from Antonio Rudiger. Bellingham’s goal also marked a personal milestone. At 23 years and 128 days, he became the youngest player to make 60 Champions League appearances, surpassing the previous mark held by former Madrid goalkeeper Iker Casillas.

Mbappe scored for the sixth consecutive Champions League match and reached 16 goals in 15 appearances this season. The contrasting results left Madrid with a perfect record while Liverpool suffered their first defeat in the competition. The reports did not provide further details on the other league-phase fixtures, but highlighted a night defined by late goals: Valverde’s winner secured Madrid’s comeback, while Muriqi’s strike ended Liverpool’s unbeaten European start.