Manchester United conceded two first-half goals and then scored three in the second half to beat Atalanta 3-2 in the third matchday of the Champions League group stage.
It was another average performance for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s team but Cristiano Ronaldo came to the rescue once again, heading in the winner in the 81st minute.
United continue to look disjointed under Solskjaer, but the class of the attackers on the field are making up for the defensive and midfield frailties.
Bruno Fernandes was the star for United once again with his crucial passes and assists, as he and his Portuguese teammate Ronaldo ensured that the counter-attacking Italian side did not cause the upset of the night.
The win takes United to the top of the group table, but there will be a lot of work for the team to do ahead of a run of three consecutive big fixtures in the Premier League—against Liverpool, Tottenham and Manchester City.
ℹ️ Most goals in a Champions League week:
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) October 20, 2021
⚽️6⃣3⃣ matchday 1, 2000/01
⚽️6⃣2⃣ matchday 3, 2020/21
⚽️5⃣9⃣ matchday 3, 2021/22
⚽️5⃣9⃣ matchday 3, 2014/15
⚽️5⃣8⃣ matchday 4, 2012/13 #UCL pic.twitter.com/BUF8d8Dk2S
Pique to the rescue
Barcelona secured their first win of this season’s Champions League, but only just. Defender Gerard Pique scored the only goal of the game against Dynamo Kyiv.
Despite commanding 63 per cent of the possession and getting away 11 shots on goal, Barcelona lacked bite in attack and coach Ronald Koeman was left to rue the missed chances. He said the team should have comfortably won 4-0.
Pique volleyed home from a floating cross after a corner kick routine, giving Barcelona their first goal of the CL season.
The goal was Pique’s 16th in the competition, making him the joint-highest scoring defender in the history of the Champions League. He goes level with Madrid legend Roberto Carlos, with Sergio Ramos on 15.
Barcelona had lost their first two matches against Bayern Munich and Benfica, who occupy the first two spots on the table.
The win, nevertheless, is much needed for Barcelona, who are down in the dumps with their poor start to the season and will play Real Madrid on Sunday in the showpiece Spanish El Clasico.
Bittersweet for Blues
Reigning champions Chelsea thumped Swedish side Malmo 4-0 but there was bad news for the team as strikers Romelu Lukaku and Timo Werner sustained injuries and were pulled out before half-time.
Andreas Christensen’s first goal for the club in the 9th minute was followed by two Jorginho penalties and Kai Havertz’s goal to take the English side to second in Group H, behind Juventus.
Luckily for coach Thomas Tuchel, the next five games for Chelsea are against lesser opponents, and he has called on his other players to prove themselves in the absence of Lukaku and Werner.
In other games, Juventus beat Zenit 1-0 to top the group with full points, and a Leroy Sane double helped Bayern Munich do the same in their group with a comfortable 4-0 win over Benfica.
The next round of Champions League fixtures are on November 2-4.
