Apoel put in a brave display against Real Madrid but eventually went down to a 3-0 defeat at the Santiago Bernabeu courtesy of a Cristiano Ronaldo brace and a Sergio Ramos bicycle kick.
After resting a number of key players in his side’s disappointing home draw to Levante on the weekend, Zinedine Zidane restored his big names to the starting line-up for the visit of Giorgos Donis’ men.
The Greek boss, meanwhile, gave starts to new boys Praxitelis Vouros and Roland Sallai at right-back and right wing respectively, who had the unenviable task of attempting to stop Marcelo and Gareth Bale.
Despite the 3-0 scoreline, Donis and his men will be content with their display, and will look to take the positives into the rest of their challenging European campaign.
In the group’s other game, Tottenham Hotspur defeated Borussia Dortmund 3-1 at Wembley, and Apoel’s next Champions League game sees them host the North London club at the GSP Stadium on September 26.
