Champions League Team of the Week: Arsenal's David Raya and Leverkusen's Florian Wirtz impress on Matchday 1

What a week it's been. Three days, 18 games, a host of top-class players – there really has been no shortage of options for our first Champions League team of the week.

We're playing a 4-4-2 this time, partly because it's the formation that allows you to have the most options in your XI, but mainly because I watched Mike Bassett: England Manager last week.

Goalkeeper: David Raya, Arsenal

Is it a question of Thibaut Courtois's volume versus a moment of magnificence from David Raya? The Arsenal man just outdoes him, his double save from Mateo Retegui's penalty was that good. Admittedly, the Atalanta striker's header from the rebound was one of the weakest seen in the Champions League this season, but Raya had to run halfway to goal after a very good initial save.

The former Brentford man has already had moments of excellence in this competition, but this season it seems that not a week goes by without Raya offering something spectacular, usually after half of the match when he has been watching William Saliba and Gabriel on cruise control. His name has not really been mentioned among the best goalkeepers in football, but since the start of the year, he has conceded just 12 goals in 26 games and has made a number of excellent saves. Considering everything he offers his team on the ball, perhaps he has a case to be among the best in his position.

LD: Angelo Preciado, Sparta Prague

You won't find many full-backs who end up completing fewer passes than they concede, but while Angelo Preciado wasn't the most steadying influence on the build-up to play, he made far more direct contributions. Six ball recoveries led his team, as did eight progressive carries and two chances created.

Central defender: Zeno Debast, Sporting

One of the rules we follow quite closely on CBS Sports' Champions League Team of the Week is not to pick center backs predominantly on the goals they score. We intend to stick to that. However…

What do you want me to do?

CB: Liam Scales, Celtic

Few, if any, players were as effective at advancing the ball into the opposition half this week as Liam Scales, who added to his 21 progressive passes and 14 passes into the attacking third by an impressive 22 progressive carries. Then there was that rather ferocious header at the near post which kicked off what was a delirious night at Celtic Park.

The natural tendency is to criticise any opponent who can lose 5-1 to Celtic, who always get that kind of result, in a European game. It is fair to say that Slovan Bratislava are probably not going to measure up in their next seven Champions League games, but that does not mean that Celtic have not impressed precisely because of the nature of their opponents. With tougher games ahead and a play-off run potentially on the horizon, Brendan Rodgers' side had to be assertive. The scales set the tone for that kind of performance from the foundation of the team.

LB: Josko Gvardiol, Manchester City

Inter’s defensive work at the Etihad Stadium could have been worthy of praise, some of it deserved given they kept Erling Haaland at bay for most of the evening and had the rest of the Manchester City side at bay until Ilkay Gundogan’s final chances. At the other end, however, the hosts’ defending had to be no less impressive given the way Inter broke through their high press. Gvardiol was crucial in City holding firm, most notably in a crucial header that put a dangerous cross coming his way to safety. The hosts often found themselves defending man-to-man when Inter pushed players into the opposition half, in such circumstances Gvardiol’s ability to dominate their duels and stop Marcus Thuram was vital.

“We knew it wasn't going to be easy,” said the Croatian international. “We knew how good they are and we did very well. We kept a clean sheet, we could have scored goals, but it wasn't our day.”

RM: Jamie Gittens, Borussia Dortmund

In the seven teams over the next few weeks, we'd do well to find a player more deserving of a place in limited playing time than Jamie Gittens. When he came on to the pitch at the Jan Breydel Stadium, Borussia Dortmund were on the ropes. Club Brugge had had more chances and better ones too. Twenty-two minutes later, the Bundesliga side were cruising to a 3-0 victory, secured for them by their young winger.

First he did an outstanding job of breaking into the box and firing a shot that earned a fortunate deflection that left the goalkeeper on the ground. On the second occasion he needed no help, speeding up and slowing down before finding a way past two defenders and firing into the far corner.

CM: Ryan Gravenberch, Liverpool

As Arne Slot has pointed out, the San Siro has seen many great Dutch midfielders come through its doors and be the protagonists of the big occasions. Well, none of the likes of Clarence Seedorf, Edgar Davids or Ruud Gullit would have turned down a performance like Ryan Gravenberch's. The 22-year-old has been the breakout star of Arne Slot's first few weeks in charge and on Wednesday night he was the epitome of composure as Liverpool overcame a slow start to claim an easy 3-1 win over AC Milan.

His passing was fairly accurate from the base of midfield, but what Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szboszlai really need around him is someone who can win the ball back. Gravenberch did exactly that with seven interceptions in total.

CM: Teun Koopmeiners, Juventus

Even in top form, no one would have noticed it from the stunning creative display of Teun Koopmeiners, whose passes in the 3-1 win over PSV Eindhoven led to six chances for his Juventus teammates, with 0.64 expected assists – an impressive performance in any game. In particular, his work on the left flank, close to Kenan Yildiz, raised deeply uncomfortable questions for opponents on what was an impressive night for The old woman.

LM: Florian Wirtz, Bayer Leverkusen

I'm cheating a little bit that one of the best players in the game is coming into this team slightly out of position. Sue me. And if that seems like an exaggeration, well, you haven't been following Florian Wirtz's start to the new season very closely. In the Bundesliga, he's been averaging 1.06 expected goals without penalties + expected assists per 90 minutes, three goals and one assist in his first three games.

Tonight was a sign that Wirtz is not one of those players whose numbers should be heavily taxed in the Bundesliga. On his Champions League debut, he looked like he was playing his 100th game, scoring early and superbly to start a game in which he always found space. When Jeremie Frimpong picked him out so accurately, there could only be one outcome.

DT: Harry Kane, Bayern Munich

While it would be unwise to overscore a home game against one of the teams that have been unsuccessful in qualifying, all Harry Kane and Bayern Munich can do in a game like this is run up the scoreline without drama. Dinamo Zagreb's brief flurry of goals in the second half was a reminder of the sloppiness that prevented this team from truly competing at home and in Europe last season and the enormous work Kane had to do to disguise it.

Looking ahead, though, England's top scorer in the Champions League can expect big things. There are a few tough games in the immediate future for Bayern (visits to Aston Villa and Barcelona next), but even in those games, the Bavarians will have opportunities. If Kane scores with the precision he showed this week, don't rule out the possibility of closing in on Cristiano Ronaldo's single-season goalscoring record – provided his teammates can help him stay in the competition.

ST: Antoine Griezmann, Atletico Madrid

Morgan Rogers, this sport was yours until the last minute of the last matchday. However, there is no denying that Antoine Griezmann is still playing as well as ever several months after he was supposed to leave the European game to make it big in Los Angeles. Thank goodness for Atletico Madrid that he is still there because they needed him to rescue them from some terrible defending early on.

Griezmann did it in style. His equalising volley came in all sorts of spaces, but the Frenchman finished it perfectly and it went down, leaving Peter Gulacsi with no chance. The Leipzig goalkeeper was also unable to do much in the final minute, when Griezmann made space to send in a cross and positioned himself perfectly at the far post for José Giménez to finish on the run and win the game for Atlético. At 33 years old and with his top-flight career supposedly drawing to a close, Griezmann is still a striker who really can do it all.