Champions League, under the lights at Old Trafford. It doesn't get much better, does it? For the second European outing of the campaign, it was to be a repeat of May's Europa League Final against Villarreal. From the four previous meetings between the sides in the Champions League, no goals had been scored by either teams.
Missing three of the four regular defensive starters, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was forced into deploying a rather makeshift but still entirely capable back line. Really, the starting side was the strongest at the boss' disposal taking injuries into account. David de Gea was once again favoured between the sticks amidst his stellar spell of form, behind a pairing of Victor Lindelof and Raphael Varane (starting for the first time in the Champions League for United) given Harry Maguire's knock. Diogo Dalot and Alex Telles lined up in place of the suspended Aaron Wan-Bissaka and injured Luke Shaw respectively, with the 'McFred' pairng split in midfield to form a more offensive duo of Paul Pogba with Scott McTominay. The attack of Bruno Fernandes, Mason Greenwood, Jadon Sancho and Cristiano Ronaldo (on his Old Trafford Champions League return) was a formidable prospect.
United were off the blocks very fast, displaying early urgency in their attacking play and pressing. McTominay initially sat deep as a number six, with Pogba joining with Fernandes ahead in the system heavily reported as a prospect during the summer - epitomising Solskjaer's positive intent. The outlying flaw, however, was that United were left slightly open and exposed when defending transitions.
Following a momentary switch-off from United, Villarreal summer signing Arnaut Danjuma was unleashed as the Spaniards stepped into a rhythm; the ex-Bournemouth man found his way in behind Dalot, but the eventual effort was straight at De Gea. Despite starting really brightly, the home side begun to lose their grasp on proceedings. Dalot looked incredibly vulnerable against Danjuma as Villarreal continually concentrated the flow down their left hand side. The United right back was overloaded by Alberto Moreno on one occasion, dragged away to open another space for Danjuma to hit at De Gea - his teasing finish was denied by a strong hand from the goalkeeper. Villarreal looked dangerous.
There were certainly signs that both sides were able to unlock one another, with plenty of space opening up for each team to exploit. For neutrals, the match was becoming an increasingly exciting prospect.
The dubious defending from Dalot continued against Danjuma as the half progressed, with the Dutchman tormenting his opposite number once more; this time, De Gea was forced to react quickly to tip Paco Alcacer's header over the crossbar. If one thing was proven during the first half, it was the significance of Wan-Bissaka's defensive ability - which is also going to be missed against Atalanta due to an extension of his European suspension.
United similarly enjoyed some fluid attacking passages, but clear cut opportunities proved near enough impossible to come by. Villarreal had the pick of the chances, dominating on the attacking front and forcing De Gea into another enduring another busy match. The reds' electric start petered out too quickly, with intensity faltering and the pedestrian demeanours returning. The largely-changed defence was visibly disjointed, with positional unawareness leading to the number of Villarreal opportunities. Thankfully for Solskjaer's men, the opposing attack failed to convert in front of goal in the absence of their main man Gerard Moreno. The pick of the missed opportunities came from a Varane misjudgment, seeing the ball find its way right into the path of deputy striker Alacer - who squandered his chance from short range.
Positive phases only became rarer for United, with quality growing almost wholly absent going forward. Once again, there was a substantial lack of shots on target. Many possessional phases were ended prematurely due to the lacklustre nature of United's passing, with the entire side looking lost for ideas. Whenever fluency was established, there was a massive struggle to sustain it.
Villarreal continued to engineer opportunities as the half came to a close, with Dalot finally coming out on top by maturely nullifying an ultimately underwhelming two-on-one situation for the visitors. Moments after, however, United were nearly gifted an admittedly undeserved lead at the other end after former Liverpool left back Moreno almost poked Pogba's dinked ball into his own net. The end-to-end nature of the half was sustained until the death, with De Gea called into action again to ensure Villarreal didn't lead at the break following a lengthy carry out from defence.
The Spanish outfit came into the match undefeated in 26 European matches against non-Spanish opposition, and looked in pole position to continue the run heading into the second period. United were incredibly fortunate not to be behind at the pause, with Villarreal significantly better-drilled.
Heading into the second half, the United press remained insufficient from the off. Promptly, the price was paid. The goalscoring move from Villarreal started from Varane committing and leaving a space vacant at centre back, with the midfield just nowhere to do their duty and cover for the Frenchman. Danjuma once again got the better of Dalot, with Alcacer poking in from the former's ball across having evaded both Lindelof and Telles. The 0-0 duck in this fixture was broken, with the theme of conceding first recurring once more for United.
United looked lost in the match, unable to supply Ronaldo as is obviously a predominant intention. Fernandes - as throughout - tried to take ownership by constantly driving back and forth, but the performance was otherwise majorly hampered by a slow flow and absence of overall quality. There was a step up in response to the goal, though.
Fernandes seized his opportunity to execute a blatant training ground routine, with a wide freekick dinked exquisitely to the free Telles on the far edge of the box. The left back shaped his body to strike first time on the volley, and impeccably found the bottom corner of the Villarreal goal. It was a remarkably calculated set-piece routine, capped off with what will be considered one of the goals of the season from Telles.
United really shifted up a gear, with Old Trafford absolutely raucous. There were instantly openings for Sancho and then (to an extent) Pogba, with more intent and improved runs in behind leading to more avail. The spells of passing grew more fluid for United, yet Villarreal remained a force on the break. Nonetheless, the reds continued to trouble their opposition and force Geronimo Rulli into action through the likes of Greenwood.
The approach became more direct in conjunction with harder work ethic, bolstered by the introduction of Edinson Cavani fighting absolutely every lost cause. The Uruguayan replaced Sancho (who still struggled to find his stride), whilst Nemanja Matic provided midfield reinforcement in place of Pogba. Cavani almost had the perfect impact, missing a header from close range having been slightly put off by the encroaching Aissa Mandi; the effort came from a promising move down the right, with Greenwood providing a pinpoint delivery for the centre forward.
Villarreal remained disciplined to restrict United, and had a massive chance with around five minutes remaining. A goalmouth scramble was somehow navigated sufficiently by United's defence, with a De Gea double save and a crucial Telles block from on the ground denying Villarreal's desperation. Once again, the reds found themselves far too exposed at the back and were consequently pushed onto the back foot at the climax of regulation time.
Just shy of stoppage time, Fred and Jesse Lingard were introduced in place of goalscorer Telles and Greenwood. When the five minutes of additional time were announced, the noise levels at Old Trafford were notched up just that bit further. As many remarked post-match, it was as though the Stretford End was 'sucking' United goalward.
An early injury time freekick was the start of sustained United pressure, with McTominay's clean volley denied by Rulli to commence the extra five minutes. Dani Parejo was subsequently dispossessed, but Ronaldo was let down by a poor first touch as the reds surged forward. Moments later, the record Champions League appearance holder found Lingard from a cross - with the Englishman just unable to guide the ball past the Argentine goalkeeper.
The pressure was continually applied, and United's late poise came with reward as Ronaldo stepped up to produce the goods when it really mattered. Cavani's desire initially allowed maintenance of possession, with Fred then playing the initial ball into Ronaldo. The ball was bundled into Lingard's path, knocking it back into Ronaldo's path to find a gap past Rulli to win the game with essentially the final kick.
The shirt was off, and the Stretford End descended into utter delirium. This sort of moment is precisely what Ronaldo was brought back for. His instincts in the box are lethal, and he’s completely inevitable when you need him the most on the biggest of stages. Since rejoining United, Ronaldo has averaged a goal every 86 minutes. Age this, age that - the man is still capable of producing the goods to quite some extent. A Fergie Time winner on his Old Trafford Champions League return in front of the Stretford End is about as fitting as possible.
The goal was in fact United’s latest winner in a Champions League match ever, whilst Ronaldo scored his 12th goal after the 90 minute mark in the competition. The Portuguese international wasn't the only match winner, though. David de Gea won us the match too, no doubt. Without his influence, chances are United would’ve lost. He faced seven shots, saving six (all from inside the box) - they were not easy saves either.
Substitutes also changed the game to a colossal extent, and that's credit to Solskjaer. When things were going against what he’d expected, he took perfect ownership and ultimately made some crucially influential substitutions. Ronaldo might have taken the limelight and Cavani's position, but that hasn’t effected the Uruguayan's attitude and professional approach one bit. The introduction of his energy was impeccably-timed by Solskjaer, allowing United to maintain their momentum through a continuation of high work ethic following the Telles equaliser. He ran and pressed absolutely tirelessly: there is no cause that he doesn’t fight. Lingard was (again) another massive influencer as a substitute, providing again with his late assist tonight; it’s now three goal involvements in his past four substitute appearances. In addition to the aforementioned pair, Fred's cross from his unorthodox left back role catalysed the match winning move. The stability offered by Matic’s reinforcement in midfield cannot be understated either. Under pressure, the manager really produced the goods with his changes.
Last night really presented the raw emotion that comes with football. It’s moments like these that remind exactly the value of fans to the spot, as they spurred United on to three important points. Yet again, it’s a reminder that football is just fine how it is; there’s absolutely no need for unnecessary revamps such as the Super League. It's pure as it is, and that's how it should be.
Were we bailed out by individual magic to paper up some of the cracks within the overall performance last night? Maybe. However, the mentality has been proven again as that of winners; this side is wholly capable of turning matches around from nowhere. The style of play and approach still falls under question, with the performance still not far from the most fluid. Who cares in the moment though? Desire won the match last night, and that’s a key quality of sides who can challenge for silverware. We were incredibly short of options defensively, but overcame such obstacles to get our Champions League campaign underway. It’s an almighty boost.
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