BERLIN, Oct. 25 (Xinhua) -- Goals from David Raum, Xavi, and Dani Olmo secured a 3-1 victory for Leipzig over Crvena Zvezda in the third round of the European Champions League on Wednesday.
The visitors from Belgrade defended staunchly but came close within the first three minutes when Hwang In-Beom shot wide from a promising position.
The opening goal came at the other end of the pitch, as Xavi set up Raum, who skillfully nutmegged Crvena Zvezda goalkeeper Omri Glazer from very close range in the 12th minute.
Leipzig gained momentum but neither Yussuf Poulsen nor Castello Lukeba could get past Glazer to double the lead shortly after.
The hosts eased off before the break and nearly paid the price, but goalkeeper Janis Blaswich was on guard, neutralizing quick attempts from Mirko Ivanic and Mila Rodic.
After the restart, Crvena Zvezda seized control and pressed Leipzig back.
However, just when the visitors seemed to dominate, Leipzig extended their lead to 2-0 at the hour mark. Xavi found ample space and drilled the ball from 17 meters into the top right corner.
Glazer was kept busy, denying attempts from Kevin Kampl and Lois Openda.
The visitors capitalized on Leipzig's wastefulness in the 70th minute when Marko Stamenic fired the ball from 18 meters past Blaswich to halve the deficit.
Leipzig broke Crvena Zvezda's resistance in the closing stages after Dani Olmo tapped home the 3-1 lead from inside the box.
"We started really well into the encounter, but the victory was a stiff piece of work today. We made too many errors and made our own life difficult," said Poulsen.
"We really want to look to the good things. We were in the game until the end. Even though we conceded a goal while we had the momentum, we didn't give up. Our young players came from the bench and helped us score, and almost got us a draw. We can take a lot of good things away from this match," said Crvena Zvezda coach Barak Bakhar.
The second win in Group G keeps the Red Bulls in the second spot, whereas Crvena Zvezda stays in the third spot after suffering its second defeat. ■
