Alessia Russo’s hat-trick moves Arsenal from fifth to second. Chelsea beat Roma 2–0, Bayern Munich draw 2–2 with Real Madrid and Servette beat OH Leuven 5–1 for their first win in nine Champions League matches.
Alessia Russo scored all three goals as Arsenal beat Benfica 3–0 at Meadow Park on 28 October, moving from fifth to second in the Women’s Champions League standings. The England forward also became the competition’s highest-scoring English player, Guardian Sport said.
Arsenal entered the match after a narrow European win and a draw in which they surrendered a two-goal lead. The victory leaves them provisionally in one of the top four places, which earn direct entry to the quarter-finals.
Arsenal beat HB Køge 1–0 on 22 September and drew 2–2 at Paris FC on 30 September after surrendering a two-goal lead. They also won the preceding Saturday’s north London derby against Tottenham.
Russo opened the scoring just before half-time after a move down Arsenal’s left. After the break, she headed in a corner and completed her hat-trick—a three-goal performance—from the penalty spot after Catarina Amado brought down Caitlin Foord.
The record adds to Russo’s earlier successes: she won the 2024–25 Champions League with Arsenal and has won two European Championship titles with England.
| Home team | Score | Away team |
|---|
Arsenal beat Benfica 3–0 to move second, Chelsea beat Roma 2–0 and Bayern Munich draw 2–2 with Real Madrid. Servette beat OH Leuven 5–1 to earn their first league-phase points.
3 min
| Arsenal | 3–0 | Benfica |
| Chelsea | 2–0 | Roma |
| Bayern Munich | 2–2 | Real Madrid |
| Servette | 5–1 | OH Leuven |
According to the Press Association, at Plough Lane substitute Ellie Carpenter put Chelsea ahead in the 51st minute after exchanging passes with Wieke Kaptein and meeting her cross with a deflected low shot. Kadeisha Buchanan headed the second in the 89th minute. Sonia Bompastor’s side remained unbeaten, with two wins in three European matches; Roma remained without a goal after three games.
Bayern recovered from two goals down at home to Real Madrid. The draw preserved Bayern’s unbeaten record across all 17 of their home matches in the competition’s group stage or league phase.
In Geneva, Servette earned their first Champions League victory at the ninth attempt. The 5–1 defeat left OH Leuven still seeking their first win in this season’s league phase.
Athenea del Castillo and Lineth Beerensteyn put Real Madrid two goals ahead before Edna Imade and Momoko Tanikawa scored for Bayern. Paola Hernández and Gloria Marinelli scored twice each for Servette.
Points after the 28 October matches, with standings still provisional: Arsenal 7, Chelsea 7, Bayern Munich 5, Real Madrid 3, Benfica 3, Servette 3, Roma 1 and OH Leuven 1.
Each club plays six different opponents in the 18-team league phase. The top four finishers advance directly to the quarter-finals; clubs finishing fifth to 12th play two-legged ties for the other four places. The bottom six are eliminated. Final positions will be settled when the league phase ends on 16 December.
Four more Matchday 3 fixtures are scheduled for 29 October: Austria Wien host Juventus, Paris FC host Häcken, HB Køge host Barcelona and Manchester City host Paris Saint-Germain. The standings remain provisional.
On 10 November, Chelsea visit Häcken, Real Madrid host Paris FC, Roma host Servette and Bayern visit Paris Saint-Germain. On 11 November, Arsenal visit Barcelona, OH Leuven host HB Køge and Benfica host Austria Wien. Arsenal then host OL Lyonnes on 19 November.
