Juventus launched their Europa League campaign in emphatic fashion on Thursday, cruising to a 5-0 victory over NEC Nijmegen in Turin, while Bournemouth marked their first-ever European appearance with a memorable 2-1 away win against Real Sociedad.
Crystal Palace also enjoyed a comfortable night in Europe, defeating Lech Poznan 4-0, but Celtic endured another disappointing European evening after suffering a 3-1 home defeat to Ferencvaros.
Juventus, who missed out on Champions League qualification last season, are using the Europa League as an opportunity to pursue their first major European trophy in three decades.
The Italian giants dominated from the outset against NEC, with Nico Gonzalez, Kerim Alajbegovic and Nick Woltemade all finding the net before half-time. Woltemade, on loan from Newcastle, scored his first goal since joining Juventus.
Zeki Celik and Randal Kolo Muani added further goals after the break to complete a comprehensive victory.
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The result represented a strong response from Juventus following a contrasting night for fellow Italian side AC Milan, who were beaten 2-0 by Benfica in Wednesday’s Europa League action.
Bournemouth Make European History
Bournemouth enjoyed a dream start to their first European campaign, defeating Real Sociedad 2-1 in San Sebastian.
Justin Kluivert opened the scoring before Rayan doubled Bournemouth’s advantage at the back post, putting the visitors 2-0 ahead inside the opening 20 minutes.
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The victory was particularly significant given Bournemouth’s struggles to protect leads domestically.
Manager Marco Rose is still searching for his first Premier League victory this season, despite Bournemouth having taken the lead in all four of their league matches so far.
Real Sociedad reduced the deficit when Sergio Gomez’s attempted cross flew into the far corner, but Bournemouth held firm to secure a landmark European victory.
Palace Continue Perfect English Record
Conference League winners last season, Crystal Palace continued their impressive European run with a 4-0 victory over Lech Poznan at Selhurst Park.
Yeremy Pino opened the scoring after capitalising on a costly mistake from a Poznan throw-in.
Chris Richards then doubled Palace’s advantage before Jørgen Strand Larsen converted a penalty to make it 3-0.
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Eddie Nketiah completed the rout as Palace secured another convincing European victory.
The result also maintained the perfect record of English clubs in Champions League and Europa League competition this season, with all eight having won their matches so far.
Another European Nightmare for Celtic
Celtic’s difficult start to the season continued as they were beaten 3-1 at home by Ferencvaros.
The defeat came only weeks after Celtic’s Champions League qualifying campaign ended against Austrian side LASK, despite the Scottish champions having established a four-goal advantage at one stage.
Celtic also suffered a 3-0 defeat to city rivals Rangers last weekend, increasing the pressure on manager Martin O’Neill.
Ferencvaros exposed Celtic’s defensive weaknesses once again. Liam Scales’ own goal and Kristoffer Zachariassen’s strike put the Hungarian visitors in control.
Daniel Arzani then produced a sensational goal on his return to Celtic Park, completing an impressive night for Ferencvaros.
Besiktas Rout Marseille
In Istanbul, Besiktas defeated Marseille 4-1, handing the French side their fourth consecutive defeat.
Ilhan Fakili opened the scoring for the Turkish hosts before Keyliane Abdallah briefly restored parity for Marseille.
Besiktas then took control after the break, with Vaclav Cerny, Michael Amir Murillo and Ernest Poku all finding the net to complete a convincing victory.
The opening round of matches therefore produced contrasting fortunes across the competition, with Juventus, Bournemouth, Crystal Palace and Besiktas making strong statements, while Celtic and Marseille were left facing difficult questions after heavy defeats.
