Champions League: Liverpool Trounced By Napoli As Robert Lewandowski Hits Barcelona Hat-trick

Last season's beaten finalists Liverpool got their Champions League campaign off to a disastrous start in a 4-1 defeat away to Napoli on Wednesday, while Robert Lewandowski hit a hat-trick in a big win for Barcelona. Tottenham Hotspur and Bayern Munich also got their campaigns underway with victories, but Rangers were crushed 4-0 by Ajax in the Netherlands on their return to the group phase of Europe's elite club competition.

Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool have won just two of their first six Premier League games this season and there was to be no improvement on their trip to Italy as Napoli raced into an early lead and never looked back.

Piotr Zielinski converted a fifth-minute penalty, and Victor Osimhen then had a second Napoli spot-kick saved by Alisson Becker.

Yet Napoli -- who had defeated Liverpool in their own stadium in the group stage in 2018 and in 2019 -- were 3-0 up at the break as Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa's fine finish was followed by a tap-in from substitute Giovanni Simeone.

Liverpool fell further behind two minutes into the second half as Zielinski followed up to score after his initial effort was saved, but Luis Diaz did pull a goal back.

"We were miles too open. You can't come to a place like this and not be compact. They were by miles the better team," Liverpool left-back Andy Robertson told BT Sport.

"We have to wake up and quickly because we can't perform like that."

- Rangers crushed by Ajax -

The six-time European Cup winners' next Group A outing is at home to Ajax, who could have won by more than four at home to Rangers, last season's Europa League finalists playing in the Champions League group stage for the first time since 2010.

Edson Alvarez headed Ajax in front before a Steven Berghuis shot