UCL: Emotional and dramatic night at Old Trafford
Manchester United 1 - 0 FC Copenhagen
Andre Onana saved a penalty in the final seconds to give Manchester United a dramatic victory against Copenhagen.
On what was always going to be an an emotional night in Manchester, a lone piper walked the teams out playing the United anthem 'We'll Never Die' as Old Trafford paid its respects to Sir Bobby Charlton.
The match report in brief
The vast majority of United fans were hoping that Harry Maguire's first goal since February 2022 had given them the win they craved.
Christian Eriksen delivered a superb curling cross to the far post 18 minutes from time, Maguire met it perfectly, shrugging off the attentions of a defender to make sure he was in position to head home.
However, with the four minutes of added time played, Scott McTominay conceded a penalty by swinging a high boot dangerously near Mohamed Elyounoussi's face.
In dramatic circumstances, Onana turned Jordan Larsson's effort wide with what turned out to be the last action of the game. The victory breathed new life into a Champions League campaign that had started with successive defeats for Erik ten Hag's side.
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A poor performance at times but United got the job done
The overall performance was not impressive but, as on Saturday, the manner of the victory was secondary to the final outcome given the enormous legacy of the man they were trying to honor.
Redemption for Maguire and Onana
Maguire would have been sold in the summer had he accepted the chance to link up with David Moyes at West Ham United, while many experts were starting to question Ten Hag's wisdom in replacing David de Gea with Onana. Both were integral to this win.
Maguire and Onana the heroes for Manchester United 🙌#UCL pic.twitter.com/4IFePPN7eg
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) October 24, 2023
Best reaction
Liam, a Manchester United Season Ticket holder in the Stretford End was full of praise for two players: "Harry Maguire deserves credit. He has endured nothing but abuse for the past year. He was exceptional in this match. Onana deserves lots of praise also."
Another fan was thinking about the longer term impact of the result. They told us: "That was miles from perfect but so much better than it could have been. Those visits to Copenhagen and Istanbul are pivotal now. Two wins from those matches are an absolute necessity. Potentially, we could be facing a Bayern team with nothing to play for. There's a long way to go."
Frank was sat in East Stand and believes the introduction of another Danish player changed the game for Manchester United told us: "Copenhagen were well organised during the match, and you need good players to break them down. Christian Eriksen makes the right passes and played well during he second-half. He chnged the game for us."
Heathen1878 was pleased with the win but unhappy with many elements of the performances. He told us: "Shocking first half but much better in the second half. I am really pleased for Onana. He deserves that after coming in for some criticism that was well oer the top. I am now more concerned about the form and performances of Bruno Fernandes."
The United boss believes some momentum is starting to build again.
🧱 After three consecutive wins in all competitions, the boss says momentum is beginning to build.#MUFC
— Manchester United (@ManUtd) October 25, 2023
More Champions League news and stories can be found here: UCL and UEL (eurosuperfootball.blogspot.com)
