Club Brugge and FC Barcelona served up a breathtaking 3–3 draw in their UEFA Champions League Group Stage clash — a match that had everything: early goals, missed chances, VAR drama, and stunning individual performances.

Despite Barcelona entering the game as heavy favourites, the Belgian hosts had other ideas. Just six minutes in, Forbes broke the offside trap and squared the ball to Trisoldi, who slotted it under Wojciech Szczęsny to open the scoring.

The Catalans needed only two minutes to respond. A clever pass from Fermín López found Ferran Torres, who coolly finished from the penalty spot area to make it 1–1. Barça nearly took the lead soon after when López hit the post and Marcus Rashford fired just over the bar.

Brugge punished that wastefulness in classic counter-attacking style. After a Barça corner, Christos Tzolis launched a swift break and set up Forbes, who raced through and confidently beat Szczęsny for 2–1.

Before half-time, Barcelona twice came close to equalising — Jules Koundé rattled the crossbar following a brilliant assist from Lamine Yamal, and right before the interval, Ferran Torres somehow missed the target after another dazzling pass from the teenage star.

In the 52nd minute, Yamal found himself one-on-one but shot straight at the goalkeeper. However, he made amends moments later — twisting past defenders, combining beautifully with Fermín, and calmly slotting the ball home to level the score at 2–2.

Brugge hit back almost immediately. Forbes first blasted over from close range but then completed his brace with a composed finish after a perfectly weighted through ball from Hans Vanaken — 3–2 to the Belgians.

Drama struck again when Forbes went down in the box and referee Anthony Taylor awarded a penalty, only to overturn his decision following a VAR review. Then, in the 77th minute, fortune turned against Brugge — Yamal’s strike deflected off Tzolis and nestled into the net for 3–3.

In stoppage time, Brugge thought they had won it when Vermant scored, but Taylor ruled it out for a foul in the build-up. The final whistle brought relief for Barcelona and pride for Brugge — a thrilling encounter where the underdogs matched one of Europe’s giants blow for blow.

2025-26 UEFA Champions League

Club Brugge - Barcelona 3:3 (2:1)
Goals: Tresoldi, 6 (1:0); Torres F., 8 (1:1); Forbs, 17 (2:1); Yamal, 61 (2:2); Forbs, 63 (3:2); Tzolis, 77 (own goal) (3:3)

Club Brugge: Jackers; Sabbe; Ordonez J.; Seys; Mechele; Stankovic Al.; Onyedika (Audoor, 84; Vetlesen, 87); Vanaken; Forbs (Diakhon, 78); Tzolis; Tresoldi (Vermant, 78)
Substitution: Diakhon (from 78); Vermant (from 78); Audoor (from 84 till 87); Vetlesen (from 87)
Bench: van den Heuvel; de Corte; Romero; Spileers; Siquet; Sandra; Campbell S.; Nilsson G.
Yellow Cards: Onyedika 32; Diakhon 81

Barcelona: Szczesny; Balde Al. (Martín G., 93); Araujo R.; Kounde; Garcia E. (Cubarsí, 93); de Jong F.; Fermin Fermin; Casado M. (Olmo, 58); Yamal; Rashford (Bardagji, 83); Torres F. (Lewandowski, 58)
Substitution: Olmo (from 58); Lewandowski (from 58); Bardagji (from 83); Cubarsí (from 93); Martín G. (from 93)
Bench: Kochen; Bernal; Fernández Dro; Fernández T.
Yellow Cards: Kounde 47; Yamal 81; Fermin Fermin 85