Bayern ease to another opening day win and Man City cruise against Crystal Palace

Bayern Munich got the Bundesliga off to a devastating start with a 5-1 win over Stuttgart on Friday, while defending Ligue 1 champion Paris Saint-Germain needed two goals in stoppage time to rescue a point at Lille.

Erling Haaland and Rayan Cherki both bagged a brace as Manchester City overran Crystal Palace 4-1 in the Premier League and AC Milan beat Venezia 2-0 in Serie A.

In La Liga, Alaves and Racing Santander both won by a single goal, over Villarreal and Elche respectively.

Reigning champion Bayern Munich made a typically dominant start to the league with a 5-1 victory at home against Stuttgart.

Dayot Upamecano put Bayern in front when he headed home a Joshua Kimmich corner after 21 minutes.

Josha Vagnoman equalized for the visitor in the 52nd. But after Michael Olise put Bayern ahead again three minutes later, Vagnoman conceded an own goal to give Bayern a 3-1 lead.

Aleksandar Pavlović made it 4-1 with eight minutes left on the clock and Luis Díaz added the fifth in stoppage time.

Bayern has not lost its first Bundesliga game of the season for 15 consecutive years.

Paris Saint-Germain scored two goals in stoppage time to draw at Lille 2-2 and record its second consecutive Ligue 1 draw.

The French and European champion came from behind to draw 2-2 at Rennes last week but looked certain to leave Lille empty-handed. A spectacular first half strike from Hakon Arnar Haraldsson and an 84th-minute goal from Dilane Bakwa put the home side in command.

However, Vitinha after 91 minutes and Marquinhos four minutes later guaranteed a remarkable recovery for Luis Henrique’s side.

Haaland opened the scoring with a header in the 17th minute and rounded it off with a left-foot strike six minutes from time.

Cherki scored in the 54th and 59th minutes, achieving his first Premier League brace in his 181st appearance.

Palace’s goal came in between the two Cherki strikes; Yeremy Pino’s fantastic free kick rebounded off the bar and into the net of goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma.

Serie A leader AC Milan snapped a four-game losing run at home by beating newly promoted Venezia 2-0 at the San Siro.

Goncalo Ramos after 69 minutes and then an own goal from Redouane Halhal a minute before time gave the home side a comfortable win.

The result means Ruben Amorim’s side are two for two so far as it seeks to halt the dominance of champion and city rival Inter Milan.

It was a welcome win for a side that lost its last three home games last season and another early warning for Venezia, which lost its league opener away at Lecce 2-0.

Alaves went to the top of La Liga when it beat Villarreal 1-0 to maintain its unbeaten start.

Argentine Lucas Boye got the only goal after 31 minutes. Alaves has seven points from its first three games.

Earlier, Yassir Zabiri scored a first half hat trick to put Racing Santander on the road to a 3-2 victory against Elche.

Elche hit back with late goals from Buba Sangare and Fer Nino but the home side held on to take all three points and leave Elche looking for its first win.

Elche has one point from nine, while Racing has four.

See AP’s full soccer coverage here

AC Milan's Ardon Jashari, left, scores his side's second goal pst Venezia's goalkeeper Filip Stankovic during a Serie A soccer match between AC Milan and Venezia, in Milan, Italy, Friday, Aug. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

Lille's Dilane Bakwa, right, scores his side's second goal during the French League One soccer match between Lille and Paris Saint-Germain, in Lille, France, Friday, Aug. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Jean-Francois Badias)

Manchester City's Rayan Cherki, right, celebrates with Erling Haaland after scoring his side's third goal during the English Premier League soccer match between Crystal Palace and Manchester City in London, Friday, Aug. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

Bayern's Harry Kane, centre, passes the ball during the Bundesliga soccer match between Bayern Munich and VfB Stuttgart in Munich, Germany, Friday, Aug. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)

Bayern's Aleksandar Pavlovic, top, celebrates after scoring his side's fourth goal with Ismael Saibari during the Bundesliga soccer match between Bayern Munich and VfB Stuttgart in Munich, Germany, Friday, Aug. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)

DENVER (AP) — Cale Makar and the Colorado Avalanche agreed to a $163.2 million, eight-year extension on Friday that will make him the highest paid player in league history.

The terms of the deal were confirmed by his agency, Bartlett Hockey.

Makar’s extension is set to be the the richest in NHL history, surpassing the eight-year, $136 million extension signed by Minnesota forward Kirill Kaprizov last September. Makar's deal runs through the 2034-35 season.

With an annual average value (AAV) of $20.4 million beginning in 2027-28, Makar’s deal eclipses that of San Jose Sharks superstar Macklin Celebrini, who signed a five-year, $94 million extension in late July and has an $18.8 million AAV.

Makar’s record-setting deal could push the limit even higher with Edmonton's Connor McDavid and Toronto's Auston Matthews eligible for extensions next summer.

“I couldn’t be more excited to continue my journey here with the Avalanche in this amazing city of Denver,” Makar said in a video posted on social media by the team, calling it a historic day. “Here’s to another hopefully amazing nine years.”

The 27-year-old Makar is coming off a season in which he had 20 goals and 59 assists. He finished second to Zach Werenski of Columbus in the Norris Trophy voting, an award that goes to the league’s top defenseman. Makar has won the award twice over his career.

The cap hit for Makar for last season was $9 million after signing a six-year, $54 million contract in 2021. The new deal for Makar now sets the bar for fellow standout defensemen Quinn Hughes of Minnesota and Werenski.

Securing the long-term services of Makar was a high priority this offseason for president of hockey operations/general manager Joe Sakic, who maintained that Makar was “going to finish his career” in Colorado. Makar was taken fourth overall by Colorado in 2017 out of the University of Massachusetts.

The salary cap is projected to be $113.5 million in 2027-28 when Makar's new deal begins. He will take up roughly 18% of the room for a team with a Cup-ready roster. Left wing Artturi Lehkonen is set to be a free agent after this season, along with center Nicolas Roy and goaltender Scott Wedgewood.

Makar was banged up heading into a Western Conference Final where the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Avalanche were swept by the Vegas Golden Knights. An upper-body injury sidelined him for Games 1 and 2, but he returned for the final two contests. Sakic recently said that Makar is slated to be ready for training camp.

It’s been a busy offseason for Sakic, who’s stepping back into the role of GM after Chris MacFarland left to lead the front office in Nashville. Among the deals orchestrated by Sakic was sending Valeri Nichushkin to the Blue Jackets for draft picks. It was a way to free up space to negotiate the extension for Makar.

“Cale is a generational defenseman and his accomplishments speak for themselves,” Sakic said in a statement. "He is obviously a tremendous competitor and player but even more so a great person, teammate and ambassador for the Avalanche and the Rocky Mountain region. We are beyond thrilled to get this deal done and have Cale in an Avalanche sweater for the next decade.”

A native of Calgary, Alberta, Makar has turned in four 20-goal seasons in his career, one of just 12 defensemen in league history to post at least that many campaigns. He also notched his 500th NHL point on March 28 in his 467th career game. He’s the fourth-fastest defenseman to reach that milestone, behind only Hall of Famers Bobby Orr (396 games), Paul Coffey (422) and Denis Potvin (465).

The core of Makar, Nathan MacKinnon and captain Gabriel Landeskog helped Colorado to a Stanley Cup title in 2022. Makar had eight goals and 21 assists during the championship run to capture the Conn Smythe Trophy as the MVP of the playoffs.

Makar's younger brother, Taylor, recently signed a two-year contract with the Avalanche that runs through the 2027-28 season. Taylor Makar made his NHL debut on Nov. 1 in San Jose, as the brothers became the first siblings to appear in the same contest while playing for the Avalanche. The Stastny brothers — Anton, Peter and Marian — accomplished the feat when the team was the Quebec Nordiques.

“Colorado has truly become a second home to us, and we are so grateful to be here,” Cale Makar said. "I look forward to getting back on the ice with my teammates and continuing to work toward our goal of bringing the Stanley Cup back to the Mile High City.”

AP Hockey Writers Stephen Whyno and John Wawrow contributed to this report.

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/NHL

FILE - Colorado Avalanche's Cale Makar (8) skates during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Pittsburgh Penguins in Pittsburgh, March 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File)

FILE - Colorado Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar, center, celebrates his goal with teammates during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Anaheim Ducks, March 3, 2026, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull, File)

FILE - Colorado Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar skates with the puck during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Dallas Stars, March 6, 2026, in Dallas. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez, File)