European Football Round-up: Man City Thrash Palace, Bayern Hit Five as Milan Cruise Past Venezia
Manchester City and Bayern Munich delivered emphatic victories as Europe’s top leagues continued, while AC Milan maintained their strong start and Racing Santander survived a dramatic Elche comeback.
1h ago·3 min read
Manchester City delivered one of the standout performances of Friday’s European football action, cruising to a 4-1 victory over Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park in the Premier League.
Rayan Cherki was particularly influential for City, scoring twice as the visitors overwhelmed Palace in the second half. Erling Haaland also struck twice as City followed up their opening-day victory over Bournemouth with another three points.
Palace briefly threatened a comeback when a Yeremy Pino free-kick struck the crossbar and rebounded into the net off goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma, but City quickly restored their advantage before putting the contest beyond the hosts.
The result gives City an impressive start to the 2026/27 Premier League campaign as they attempt to establish themselves among the early title contenders.
Bayern begin Bundesliga defence with five-star display
In Germany, Bayern Munich opened their Bundesliga title defence with a commanding 5-1 victory over VfB Stuttgart at the Allianz Arena.
Dayot Upamecano scored the first goal of the 2026/27 Bundesliga season after 21 minutes, although Stuttgart briefly threatened to spoil Bayern’s evening when Josha Vagnoman equalised shortly after half-time.
The response from the champions was immediate.
Michael Olise restored Bayern’s lead just three minutes later before Vagnoman endured a dramatic change in fortunes by putting the ball into his own net.
Aleksandar Pavlović added Bayern’s fourth in the 84th minute before Luis Díaz completed the rout in stoppage time.
The emphatic result immediately sends a warning to Bayern’s Bundesliga rivals as the Bavarians begin another campaign chasing domestic glory.
Zabiri hat-trick inspires Racing Santander
There was also plenty of drama in Spain, where newly promoted Racing Santander defeated Elche 3-2 to claim their first La Liga victory of the season.
Moroccan striker Yassir Zabiri was the star of the night, scoring a stunning first-half hat-trick on his first league start for Racing.
Zabiri struck three times inside the opening 36 minutes to put Racing firmly in control at El Sardinero.
However, what appeared destined to become a comfortable victory suddenly turned into a tense finale.
Buba Sangaré pulled one back for Elche in the 78th minute before Fer Niño scored just a minute later to reduce the deficit to 3-2.
Racing nevertheless survived the late pressure to secure all three points. Zabiri also became the first Racing player in 18 years to score a La Liga hat-trick, following Mohamed Tchité’s feat during the 2008/09 season.
AC Milan maintain perfect start
In Italy, AC Milan defeated Venezia 2-0 at San Siro to make it back-to-back victories at the beginning of their Serie A campaign.
Summer arrival Gonçalo Ramos opened the scoring in the 69th minute, registering his first goal for Milan in his first appearance at San Siro.
Venezia’s resistance was finally ended when Redouane Halhal scored an own goal late in the contest to double Milan’s advantage.
The Rossoneri had created several opportunities before eventually breaking through and securing another three points following their opening victory over Torino.
The result represents an encouraging start for Ruben Amorim’s side as Milan look to establish themselves among the leading contenders in Serie A this season.
Lille and PSG headline French action
In France, defending champions Paris Saint-Germain travelled to the Stade Pierre-Mauroy for a major early-season Ligue 1 encounter against Lille.
The Matchday Two showdown presented PSG with an opportunity to respond after being held by Rennes in their opening league fixture, while Lille entered the game having won their first match of the campaign.
With the new European domestic season gathering pace, Friday’s action offered an early glimpse of the battles ahead.
Manchester City’s four-goal performance at Selhurst Park and Bayern Munich’s five-goal demolition of Stuttgart were the headline results, while Milan maintained their perfect Serie A start and Racing Santander celebrated a memorable first victory following their return to Spain’s top flight.