LONDON -- Barcelona conceded a goal after 24 seconds and another in stoppage time as its Champions League title defence opened with a 2-2 draw against AC Milan on Tuesday, while Arsenal was also left stunned by Borussia Dortmunds late equalizer. 12th Fan Jersey . Alexandre Pato opened the scoring for Milan and, after goals from Pedro Rodriguez and David Villa looked to have put Barcelona in control, Thiago Silvas header secured a point in Group H. Dortmund levelled in the 88th minute, with Ivan Perisics volley cancelling out Robin van Persies first-half goal for Arsenal in the 1-1 draw in Group F. Chelsea manager Andre Villas-Boas oversaw a 2-0 victory over Bayer Leverkusen in Group E in his first Champions League match, while his former club Porto recovered to beat nine-man Shakhtar Donetsk 2-1 in Group G. While Porto won the Europa League in May, Barcelona lifted the European Cup for the second time in three years. The Wembley Stadium triumph cemented Barcelonas status as world footballs superpower and Pep Guardiolas side is favourite to become European champions for the fifth time in May. But the script went against them at the Nou Camp on Tuesday against a Milan side missing Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Robinho to injury. Just 24 seconds had elapsed when Pato coolly slid the ball under goalkeeper Victor Valdes after dashing through Barcelonas half. A determined Lionel Messi led the Spanish champions response as the Argentina forward created Pedro Rodriguezs 36th-minute equalizer before David Villa curled a long-range free kick into the net five minutes into the second half. "We could have played better after Barcelona took the lead," AC Milan coach Massimiliano Allegri said. "But Im happy because the team did not collapse until we found the late equalizer." That came deep into stoppage time when Thiago leapt high to meet Clarence Seedorfs corner to secure a point for Milan. "We did all we were supposed to do but we are still left with this bitter taste," Barcelona coach Guardiola said. All four teams in Group H are on one point after BATE Borisov and Viktoria Plzen drew 1-1. In Germany, Arsenal went in front just before halftime when Van Persie won possession from Sebastian Kehl and played a one-two with Theo Walcott before beating Dortmund goalkeeper Roman Weidenfeller with his shot. But after Marcel Schmelzers free kick was only half-cleared by Kieran Gibbs toward the end, Ivan Perisic volleyed in a late equalizer. The draw enabled Marseille to go top of the group after Lucho Gonzalez secured a 1-0 victory over Olympiakos. The Argentine exploited a lapse in the Greek defence, meeting Jeremy Morels cross before beating former River Plate teammate Franco Costanzo in the Olympiakos goal. At Stamford Bridge, Fernando Torres continued his goal drought for Chelsea this season but set up both goals. David Luiz ran onto Torres layoff before bending a sublime strike into the bottom corner of the net midway through the second half. And after Torres broke down the left flank, Juan Mata tapped home the second with almost the last kick of the game. Chelsea is top of Group E after Racing Genk draw 0-0 with Valencia in the other match. There were two victories in Group G -- both with 2-1 scorelines. And at Portos Stadium of the Dragon, all the goals came from Brazilians. Porto goalkeeper Helton gifted Shakhtar the lead after 12 minutes, failing to hold Willians weak shot from outside the area and spilling the ball for Luiz Adriano to tap in. But striker Hulk equalized for Porto directly from a free kick just before the half hour and Kleber latched onto James Rodriguezs cross to poke in the hosts winner six minutes after half time. Shakhtar lost left back Yaroslav Rakitskiy just before half time for a studs-up challenge on Joao Moutinho and centre back Dmytro Chygrynskiy was shown his second yellow card in the 80th. There was a first-ever Champions League win for APOEL Nicosia after second-half goals from Gustavo Manduca and Ailton secured a 2-1 win over Zenit St. Petersburg. Steve Largent Jersey . Play hard, play tough and play rough. The philosophy has been a lesson in frustration for opponents. Michael Bennett Womens Jersey . He didnt even match his first-half total from Friday night. He didnt have to, with the Knicks offering him plenty of support for a change.PERUGIA, Italy -- Italy was held to a 1-1 draw by Luxembourg on Wednesday in its final World Cup warm-up match before leaving for Brazil, with forward Mario Balotelli looking in impressive form. Claudio Marchisio headed Italy in front in the ninth minute after a splendid assist from Balotelli but Maxime Chanot levelled five minutes from time. It was Italys seventh successive match without a win, although the six draws and a defeat to Spain have all happened after securing qualification for the World Cup. "This test is absolutely not a failure, we tried to do things we had practiced in training," Italy coach Cesare Prandelli said. "But its clear we have to improve. But we had to try certain things as we have very few matches. "We know that we werent brilliant, but we leave with the knowledge that we can have a great World Cup." Prandelli had said Balotelli would amaze with his improved form and the AC Milan forward was involved in most of the Azzurris best moves. He went close to scoring on several occasions and hit the crossbar as Italy dominated. Italy departs on Thursday and will play Brazilian club Fluminense in a final friendly match on June 8, six days before kicking off its World Cup campaign against England in Manaus. Prandellis side also faces Costa Rica and Uruguay in Group D. Italy started brightly and toook an early lead when Marchisio picked out Balotelli from near the halfway line. Steven Hauschka Shirts. . The forward controlled the ball perfectly before crossing for the onrushing Marchisio to head home from close range. Balotelli almost doubled Italys advantage shortly afterward but a last-ditch tackle saw his effort deflected over the bar. The tempo slowed down somewhat but Italy should have extended its lead two minutes before halftime, when free-kick specialist Andrea Pirlo saw his effort parried with a diving save by Anthony Moris and Balotelli fired just wide of the left upright as the moved continued. Moments earlier, Antonio Candreva had also fired narrowly wide. Balotelli had another chance just after the interval when he sent a snapshot past the far post. Antonio Cassano came off the bench for only his second appearance since the European Championship final in 2012 and he almost made an immediate impact with a through ball to Balotelli, who bamboozled two players before evading a tackle from a third as he unleashed a shot which crashed off the crossbar. Candreva also hit the crossbar moments later. Luxembourg had barely troubled Italy goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon but levelled in the final minutes when Chanot headed home Mario Mutschs corner. Ignazio Abate almost immediately restored Italys advantage but was denied by Moris. ' ' '
