Three-time European champion Barcelona had an easy outing at Nou Camp when they faced Ajax Amsterdam to kick-off their Champions League campaign. But Chelsea and Borussia Dortmund suffered painful defeats in the hands of FC Basel and Napoli to begin the tournament on a wrong note.
Barcelona displayed some scintillating piece of football as they took the field against Dutch team Ajax. In their bid to win the trophy for the 4th time Barca thumped the Dutch side 4-0 in front of their home crowd. Argentine superstar Lionel Messi recorded yet another hat-trick, 24th over all, in the Barca outfit to ensure that the Catalans begin in an emphatic manner. While Gerard Pique scored the other goal, Sigthorsson squandered away a golden opportunity to restore some respect for the visitors when his spot-kick was pushed away to safety by Victor Valdez.
In England, Chelsea went down to their Swiss opponent in front of their home crowd, much to the despair of the fans. FC Basel played a determined piece of football and held their nerves when it mattered most. Chelsea, on the other hand, in spite of controlling the proceedings throughout the match gave away the precious lead which they got through their Brazilian youngster Oscar in the added minutes of the first half. The visitors scored twice in the span of 12 minutes in the later half of the match to see them through.
2012 Champions League runner-up Borussia Dortmund also suffered from the same fate as they went down 2-1 to Italian side Napoli away from home. The Dortmund players lacked discipline right from the very beginning as they saw their goalie Roman Weidenfeller and manager Jurgen Klopp given marching orders. Gonzalo Higuain and Lorenzo Insigne scored for the hosts while a late own-goal from Camelo Zuniga saw the visitors salvaging scant consolation on such a bad day.
