Gerard Pique goal earns Barcelona a first Champions League win of campaign

Barcelona 1 Dynamo Kiev 0

Gerard Pique scored the vital goal to earn Barcelona a nervy 1-0 win over Dynamo Kiev in Champions League Group E on Wednesday and keep alive the Spanish side's hopes of reaching the knock-out rounds.

Pique volleyed home Jordi Alba’s cross in the 36th minute to register Barca’s first goal of this season’s competition and secure their first victory after 3-0 defeats by Bayern Munich and Benfica.

Barcelona received another boost when striker Sergio Agüero came on as a substitute late in the second half and looked to have recovered from the calf injury he suffered in pre-season after signing from Manchester City.

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The Argentina international should be in contention to play in Sunday’s Clasico against Real Madrid.

Benfica 0 Bayern Munich 4

Bayern Munich struck four times in a frantic 15-minute spell late in the second half to cruise past Benfica and make it three wins out of three Group E matches.

Leroy Sane whipped in a fierce free kick in the 70th minute and drilled in his second in the 85th after Benfica substitute Everton headed in an own goal in the 80th and Robert Lewandowski bagged their third goal two minutes later.

The Bavarians, with coach Julian Nagelsmann missing with a flu, had earlier hit the woodwork and also had two efforts disallowed but Benfica had their share of golden opportunities in an entertaining game before eventually running out of gas after the 70th minute.

Bayern, who have now scored 12 goals in their three games and have conceded none, are top of Group E on nine points, with Benfica in second place on four.

They are also unbeaten in a record-extending 20 consecutive Champions League away games.

Young Boys 1 Villarreal 4

Yeremi Pino and Gerard Moreno scored early goals for Villarreal as they claimed a first Champions League group stage win in 13 years with a 4-1 triumph over Young Boys in a thrilling game at the Wankdorf Stadium.

The Group F victory moved the Spanish side into third in the standings on four points from three games, behind leaders Manchester United (six ) and Atalanta (four). Bottom side Young Boys (three) remain in contention at the halfway stage.

Pino received a gift on his 19th birthday when he was left completely unmarked at the back post from Alfonso Pedraza’s cross to head into the net for his first Champions League goal as Villarreal opened the scoring after six minutes.

They doubled that advantage 10 minutes later after more static defending allowed Morena to head in the second as he found acres of space between two defenders from Dani Parejo’s free kick.

Both teams wasted numerous chances to score in the second period of a hugely entertaining game but Meschack Elia finally got reward for the home side with 13 minutes to go.

That set up an grandstand finish, but as Young Boys pushed forward in search of an equaliser, they were always going to be vulnerable at the back, and Alberto Moreno and Samuel Chukwueze made the points safe for the visitors with two late strikes.

Red Bull Salzburg 3Wolfsburg 1

Striker Noah Okafor scored twice as RB Salzburg claimed a precious victory over VfL Wolfsburg at the Red Bull Arena to steam ahead in Group G and stay on course for the knock-out rounds.

Germany's teenage striker Karim Adeyemi opened the scoring for the home side after two minutes, before Wolfsburg levelled through Lukas Nmecha to leave the game in the balance.

But Okafor’s second-half brace sealed a deserved win for the Austrians to move them to seven points from three games.

Lille 0 Seviila 0

Lille were held to a 0-0 home draw by Sevilla to continue their miserable winless Champions League run.

The French champions have not tasted victory in Europe’s elite club competition since 2012 and have won only six of 41 Champions League games. They sit in third place in Group G with two points from three games this season.

At the Pierre Mauroy stadium, Sevilla dominated in the first half but lacked sharpness in the box before the tide seemed to turn.

The hosts had a couple of chances in the second half but failed to make their dominance count as they were held to a goalless draw for the second time in two home games in the competition.

Zenit St Petersburg 0 Juventus 1

Dejan Kulusevski scored a late goal to earn Juventus a hardfought 1-0 victory away to Zenit St Petersburg on Wednesday and maintain their perfect record in Group H.

The Swede was left unmarked in the box to guide a header in off the post on the 86th minute and decide a game of few opportunities at the Gazprom Arena.

Juve midfielder Weston McKennie’s shot was well saved and Claudinho curled an effort narrowly wide for the hosts early in the second half, but the goalkeepers were largely untroubled as the two teams mustered a combined three shots on target before Kulusevski struck.

The result stretched Juve’s unbeaten run to eight matches in all competitions, including six consecutive wins, and it was the resilient Italians’ fourth 1-0 win in a row.

Massimiliano Allegri’s side top the group with nine points, six clear of Zenit in third and three ahead of second-placed Chelsea, who beat pointless Malmo 4-0 in London.