Manchester United slumped to a 4-1 defeat against Como in the Champions League on Wednesday, piling further pressure on beleaguered manager Michael Carrick, while Declan Rice’s late equalizer rescued a 2-2 draw for Arsenal away to Bayern Munich.
Elsewhere, Real Madrid cruised to a 4-1 victory over RB Leipzig, while Inter Milan, Aston Villa and Real Betis also secured notable wins.
The night’s most eye-catching result came in torrential rain on the shores of Lake Como, where United suffered their joint-heaviest Champions League defeat in three decades.
Nico Paz struck twice for Cesc Fabregas’ Como, with Tasos Douvikas and Jacobo Ramon also finding the net as the competition debutants claimed their second 4-1 home victory of the campaign.
Joshua Zirkzee scored a late consolation for United, but the defeat extended their winless run to seven games in all competitions, intensifying scrutiny of Carrick as the team continues to struggle.
The Red Devils have just one win in the Premier League this season and have now suffered back-to-back defeats in Europe. Carrick’s position is increasingly under threat.
“I have not given my own position any thought,” Carrick said.
“For us to play in that way, it’s not acceptable. It wasn’t a good performance at all,” he added.
Last season’s beaten finalists, Arsenal, have seven points from a possible nine after Rice struck in the 82nd minute to earn a draw in Munich.
Bukayo Saka went off injured early, but his replacement, Eberechi Eze, fired Arsenal into the lead, only for Alphonso Davies to equalize before halftime.
Harry Kane set up that goal with a magnificent pass and then gave Bayern the lead from a second-half penalty, his 10th goal of the season in all competitions.
But Arsenal hit back as Bayern recorded a second consecutive Champions League draw.
“We looked dangerous, we got the goal and we had a moment there where we could have killed off the game,” Kane told broadcaster DAZN.
“Probably a draw was a fair result overall. ... There are a lot of games and we’ve got players with injuries, players missing tonight, so we take the point and move on.”
Jose Mourinho’s Real Madrid are one of five teams with three wins from three in this season’s Champions League. Goals either side of halftime from Bernardo Silva and Arda Guler set them on their way at the Bernabeu.
Kylian Mbappe made it 12 goals in 12 games this season for Real before Tidiam Gomis pulled one back, but Yan Diomande completed the victory with a spectacular volley against his former club.
“We know every point is important to get into the top eight. We know we have to win as many games as possible. We’ve won three and there are five to go,” Mbappe told Movistar.
Aston Villa also have a perfect record after three games. They won 3-1 at home against Viking Stavanger, with Ross Barkley’s opener followed by Emiliano Buendia’s penalty and an own goal by Henrik Heggheim.
Peter Christiansen pulled one back for the Norwegian champions, who are still looking for their first win.
Inter had Alessandro Bastoni sent off midway through the second half before Carlos Augusto’s late goal secured a 1-0 home victory over Shakhtar Donetsk, giving the Italian champions their first points.
Real Betis have maximum points after an Isco penalty secured a 1-0 win over Feyenoord in Seville.
Club Brugge defeated Lens 3-0 in Belgium, with Hans Vanaken, Joaquin Seys and Carlos Forbs all finding the net.
Victor Osimhen sealed a 4-2 victory for Galatasaray away to his former club Lille in France, following earlier goals from Yunus Akgün and Aleksey Batrakov and a Nabil Bentaleb own goal.
Teenager Soriba Diaoune scored both goals for Lille, who have lost all three of their matches.
Austria’s LASK earned its first points with an impressive 3-2 victory over Sporting in Lisbon.
Luis Suarez scored twice for Sporting, including an early penalty, but Christoph Lang, Sasa Kalajdzic and Krystof Danek scored for the visitors.
Reigning champions Paris Saint-Germain are top of the 36-team standings after beating Barcelona 4-2 on Tuesday.
However, the French club confirmed Wednesday that star winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee during the match.
He will undergo surgery in the coming days, raising doubts about whether he will play again this season.
