PSG’s Marco Verratti wriggles out of tight corner with silky Champions League touch vs Juve

The UEFA Champions League roared back into life on Tuesday evening as the cream of the European crop began their continental campaigns.

Matchday One is always a special day on the annual calendar as the famous anthem echoes out across some of Europe’s most beloved footballing citadels.

It was tricky to make out at Celtic Park though as the Celtic faithful incredibly drowned it out with a deafening riot of noise.

Sadly it simply wasn’t enough as Real Madrid asserted their supremacy, scoring three second-half goals to claim what would prove to be a comfortable three points.

Elsewhere, Chelsea’s campaign got off to the worst possible start as they fell to an embarrassing defeat at the hands of Dinamo Zagreb in Croatia.

The pick of the ties was undoubtedly the clash between Paris Saint-Germain and Italian giants, Juventus.

With PSG once again setting out to break their painful European duck, overcoming bona-fide European royalty in the Old Lady would have been top of their agenda.

They got off to the best possible start as well with Kylian Mbappe polishing off a sublime Neymar assist with a rasping volley.

Mbappe was at it again minutes later as he capped a flowing team move to double the Parisian’s lead.

They didn’t have it all their own way in the second stanza, however, as a Weston McKennie goal hauled Juventus right back into the tie.

Fortunately, PSG managed to hold on as they secured a crucial three points at the start of their campaign.

While it was the attacking trio that grabbed all the headlines on the night, the performance of Marco Verratti should not be taken for granted.

As Juve pushed forward looking for an equaliser, Verratti showed his immense value to the PSG defensive unit, putting in an epic shift in the