Manchester City Beat United as VAR Error Overshadows Derby Win

Manchester City’s 1-0 derby victory at Old Trafford was defined by an acknowledged VAR failure, yet the wider European weekend also brought damaging home draws for Chelsea, Liverpool and Tottenham, a first Ligue 1 win for Paris Saint-Germain, and another productive round for Barcelona, Arsenal, Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund.

Weekend results at a glance

VAR error overshadows City’s derby resilience

City’s winner came shortly before the hour, when Josko Gvardiol’s deflected cross reached Erling Haaland. Semi-automated technology judged Haaland to have been narrowly onside, overturning the initial decision, but Enzo Fernández was in an offside position and attempted to head the ball as it travelled across goal.

Fernández did not make contact, though his movement affected both goalkeeper Senne Lammens and defender Lisandro Martínez. Lammens had to account for the Argentine’s attempted header, while Martínez moved away from Haaland after reacting to Fernández’s run. The incident should have prompted an on-field review for Michael Oliver to decide whether Fernández had interfered with play.

The VAR team of Matt Donohue and Blake Antrobus instead relayed only the technology’s finding on Haaland. The refereeing body later accepted that the goal should not have been allowed, an admission that does nothing for United’s result but provides rare public accountability after a major procedural error. Oliver and fourth official Paul Tierney also had a view of Fernández’s involvement and the episode will raise questions about how much an on-field referee should challenge the information coming from the video room.

Foden’s red card in the 23rd minute was justified after he kicked out at Bruno Fernandes. Fernandes had also kicked Foden while the City player was on the ground, however, and should have received a yellow card for his part in the confrontation.

For all the controversy, City’s performance with 10 players for more than 70 minutes was notable. Several players involved in the second half have been at the club for less than a year, yet they showed discipline and composure in an away derby. United struck the woodwork through Marcus Rashford and Kobbie Mainoo, and Gianluigi Donnarumma denied Bryan Mbeumo late on, but those openings did not disguise a disjointed home display.

Before Mbeumo’s stoppage-time change, United had generated only 0.39 xG despite their numerical advantage. Rashford’s and Mainoo’s attempts were individual moments rather than evidence of sustained control. Michael Carrick’s side remain some distance from City in overall performance terms.

Madrid win, but Bernabéu demands more

Real Madrid beat Rayo Vallecano 4-1, although the home supporters made clear that the scoreline did not satisfy them. José Mourinho’s side had controlled the first half and moved 3-0 ahead, but a loose start after the interval brought whistles around the Bernabéu.

Pedro Díaz hit the post and Unai López went close after Madrid surrendered possession cheaply. Rayo then pulled a goal back six minutes into the half when Vinícius Júnior arrived late to a pass, allowing the visitors to regain the ball before Sergio Camello finished through Ibrahima Konaté’s legs. Jeers continued even after Madrid restored their authority and completed the 4-1 result.

The reaction reflected the particular standards at the Bernabéu, where perceived complacency and careless errors are punished as sharply as defeat. Mourinho has managed under those conditions before. Yan Diomande’s selection ahead of Arda Güler made Madrid more dangerous in transition, even if it reduced midfield control. Aurélien Tchouaméni’s return as a regular starter should give the side greater balance.

Hull expose Chelsea’s shortcomings

Chelsea escaped with a draw against newly promoted Hull City at Stamford Bridge after a performance that went beyond a simple lack of physicality. Hull had more shots, won the expected-goals contest 1.38 to 0.91, and missed three Opta-defined big chances, including opportunities for Oli McBurnie and Mohamed-Ali Cho.

There were individual defensive problems throughout the home side’s display. Jorrel Hato allowed the ball to bounce in the area for Hull’s first goal, while Chelsea’s marking for the second was passive. Lewie Coyle also had a chance as the visitors repeatedly found openings.

Xabi Alonso’s attack produced the opening goal but became predictable against organised defending, with Cole Palmer’s preference for his stronger foot easier to manage. Apart from replacing Hato with Pep Chavarría at half-time, Alonso waited until around 20 minutes from the end to introduce Valentín Barco and did not bring on Estêvão until four minutes remained.

Moisés Caicedo’s absence was keenly felt, but Chelsea’s central issue was a shortage of creativity. Reece James was often receiving possession deep in his own half, a role that did not make the best use of his qualities, and possession became sterile. Alonso described his team as “soft” and said improvement could require months, a timeframe Chelsea may not have if Champions League qualification is the target.

Barcelona and Arsenal maintain early momentum

Barcelona’s 4-2 away win over Levante extended their exceptional start, taking them to 26 goals in six matches across all competitions. Their summer decision not to replace Robert Lewandowski and Ferran Torres with a specialist centre-forward has not caused immediate problems. The club pursued Julián Álvarez but did not complete a move, instead trusting Hansi Flick’s adaptable attackers and, when necessary, 18-year-old Hamza Abdelkarim.

Barcelona’s win was more comfortable than the final score suggested. Late individual mistakes from Xavi Espart and Marc Bernal narrowed the margin, but there was no broader structural issue in their play. The more demanding tests of their forward options will arrive later in the campaign.

Arsenal made it five wins from five in all competitions by beating Sunderland 2-0 away from home, following demanding fixtures against Napoli and Chelsea during the previous week. Bruno Guimarães came off the bench to score, but Mikel Arteta was angered by Sunderland’s penalty after Ezri Konsa and Dan Ballard grappled in the area. Enzo Le Fée struck the spot-kick against the post.

Arteta argued that the decision was unacceptable at elite level given that both players were holding each other. The incident underlined the increased scrutiny on penalty-area grappling this season. A consistent approach in which both players are booked for mutual holding would reduce uncertainty over when such contact should become a penalty decision.

Bayern and Dortmund survive awkward assignments

Bayern Munich ended SV Elversberg’s dream start with a 2-1 victory. Elversberg, newly promoted and chasing a third straight win that would have taken them top of the Bundesliga, remained competitive on the scoreboard but Bayern created enough to win by more. Maurice Krattenmacher, formerly in Bayern’s system, scored an outstanding goal for the hosts.

Vincent Kompany’s side still have areas to address. Dayot Upamecano and Josip Stanišić had uncertain moments in defence, while Luis Díaz could have been more clinical. Bayern nevertheless dealt with another deep-block opponent, collected the points and prevented a major upset.

Borussia Dortmund also won 3-0, against newly promoted SC Paderborn 07, but needed Felix Nmecha’s late intervention to settle the contest. Fábio Silva scored early, then Dortmund endured a long flat spell: between Silva’s goal and a Serhou Guirassy chance early in the second half, they managed only three shots worth 0.09 xG in more than 45 minutes.

Nmecha entered with 25 minutes remaining and scored twice, his second an overhead kick. Nico Kovac has been short of No. 10 options and received little creative influence from Joey Veerman, leaving Silva and Guirassy without regular service. Dortmund’s five consecutive wins in all competitions offer encouragement, while Nico Schlotterbeck’s return from injury is an important boost.

Atlético recover as Juventus unravel

Atlético Madrid responded to successive defeats against Athletic Club and Liverpool with a 3-0 victory at Real Sociedad. They were again without both recognised centre-forwards and Pablo Barrios, yet remained patient in a difficult away match. The 84th-minute penalty that opened the scoring was fortunate in its timing but correctly awarded.

Jonathan David, recovering from a difficult spell at Juventus, came off the bench to score his first Atlético goal. Giuliano Simeone added the third after a typically relentless run in the 94th minute. The final two strikes arrived while Real Sociedad were committing players forward, but the result was deserved and offered Atlético a much-needed reset.

Juventus, by contrast, suffered a chaotic 3-2 defeat at Sassuolo. After falling behind shortly after the hour, Juve equalised in the 82nd minute through Edon Zhegrova and pressed for a winner. Kieron Bowie restored Sassuolo’s lead in the 89th minute, Zhegrova levelled again in stoppage time, and Vasilije Adzic, on loan from Juventus, scored the decisive goal three minutes later.

Luciano Spalletti’s decision to keep attacking carried risk, but the greater issue was poor execution in transition. Eighteen-year-old Darryl Bakola moved through Juventus too easily before Bowie’s goal, while Douglas Luiz afforded Adzic enough room to strike. Juventus’ late ambition was understandable; their defensive work was not.

PSG, Milan, Liverpool and Spurs face different concerns

PSG registered their first Ligue 1 win with a 1-0 victory at Brest, Ferran Torres scoring the only goal. The result prevented a fourth consecutive league match without a win, a sequence PSG have experienced only once before, in 1978-79. It was not an assured display: Matvei Safonov made a major save from Kamory Doumbia, who also hit the post, while Nuno Mendes and others were careless defensively. Brest outshot PSG and also led the expected-goals numbers.

Luis Enrique’s team have recovered from slow starts in the past two seasons and gone on to become European champions, though their disrupted pre-season after the World Cup cannot entirely explain the current level. PSG should remain favourites domestically, particularly after modest spending across much of Ligue 1, but require a rapid improvement.

AC Milan drew 2-2 with Lazio after trailing by two at half-time. Ruben Amorim removed Luka Modric during a triple half-time change, which also brought Christian Pulisic on for his first appearance of the season. Amorim said Modric can help when Milan control the ball but struggles when matches become transition-heavy, despite Milan having 60 per cent of possession in the first half.

At 41, Modric appears an awkward fit in Amorim’s 3-4-2-1 when used ahead of the back four. Milan had produced only 0.09 xG away to Juventus in the previous week, and their latest first half again featured poor attacking organisation and weak defending. Their recovery owed much to Lazio retreating too far, as well as two speculative efforts from Diego Moreira.

Liverpool’s 0-0 home draw against Fulham extended an uncomfortable Anfield run. They have won only one of their past five home matches, and, before the midweek win over Atlético, their best home victory in 2026 had been against Newcastle United in January. Fulham arrived without a point, while Liverpool lacked sharpness after Champions League action.

Andoni Iraola cited fatigue, but his side will face regular midweek schedules throughout the season. Liverpool did enough to have won, yet Iraola’s system has not fully taken hold and expensive attackers Alexander Isak, Florian Wirtz and Bradley Barcola have yet to justify combined fees approaching €500 million.

Tottenham’s goalless draw at home to Everton made it four consecutive matches without a Spurs goal. Hamburg, with one game fewer, and newly promoted Coventry City are the only other clubs in Europe’s five major leagues still without a league goal this season. Roberto De Zerbi acknowledged that improvement is required in the final third and referred to releasing a mental block.

The practical issues are clearer. Everton outworked Tottenham after a promising opening, while Dominic Solanke received too little suitable service. Omar Marmoush and Sávio have struggled when asked to carry greater responsibility than they had at Manchester City, and Mateus Fernandes has been used too high up the pitch to influence play effectively. Spurs need better structure and supply, rather than a vague search for psychological answers.