Champions League

EVEN Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s celebrations when he won this competition did not match his emotion here.He knew just how big Cristiano Ronaldo’s goal was in the last minute of injury time – very big.
Cristiano Ronaldo was mobbed after scoring a 95th minute winner against VillarrealCredit: Reuters
Cristiano Ronaldo fired home from close range in a 2-1 winCredit: Reuters
Alex Telles produced a stunning volley to level the gameCredit: Getty
Questions were starting to be asked once again.
Out of the Carabao Cup, defeated at home by Aston Villa in the league and sitting bottom of their group in the Champions League as the seconds ticked down.
The heroics of David De Gea were really to thank for a point at that stage. Then up Ronaldo popped.
He headed Fred’s cross down, Jesse Lingard stretched to toe the ball back to him and his shot was too powerful for the outstretched hand of Geronimo Rulli at his near post.
Solskjaer in his technical area turned to his bench pumping his fists wildly. What a moment – what a smash and grab, get out of jail win.
Outplayed for large parts of the game they had deservedly gone behind to Paco Alcacer’s close range side foot shot in the 53rd minute.

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Alex Telles levelled with a stunning volley from 20 yards into the far bottom corner on the hour.
Cavani came on and missed a sitter. Villarreal nearly scrambled one home at the other end then came the moment. What drama.
It was fair to say that the enforced changes to United’s back four had more than an unsettling effect.
Two of them were down to injury with both captain Harry Maguire and Luke Shaw limping out of last Saturday’s game against Aston Villa.
Victor Lindelof came in at centre-back with Telles at left-back.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka was sent off against Young Boys so was suspended, a ban that was increased to two games by Uefa on the day of this game.
It was his replacement Diogo Dalot that the visitors clearly saw as the weak link and they weren’t disappointed.
The ease with which Arnaut Danjuma waltzed past him before firing wide in the 30th minute had the home crowd gasping in disbelief.
Paco Alcacer scored the opener for VillarrealCredit: Reuters
By then De Gea had already been called into action three times to keep the scores level.
The first came when Danjuma was put clean through only to fire straight at United’s number one, who had stood his ground.
Then a slick move finished with Danjuma once again having the chance and this time his effort to the far corner was superbly clipped wide of the post by De Gea’s outstretched left hand.
Paco Alcacer’s header had him leaping to the skies to tip the ball over.
Even four-time Champions League winner Raphael Varane looked dodgy when Alcacer side stepped him but fired wide.
Last season’s 30 goal man for Villarreal Gerard Moreno, who also scored in the Europa League Final victory over United at the end of last season, was missing injured.
They were missing him to produce the killer touch their build up play deserved as they totally outplayed United in the first period.
Visiting goalkeeper Rulli did not have a save to make in that time.
Ronaldo made a record 178th Champions League appearance against VillarrealCredit: Getty
The best chance for a United player came when Ronaldo took to the air at a corner but headed well over.
Indeed the closest the home side came to scoring was when Moreno diverted Paul Pogba’s chipped ball into the box past his own goalkeeper and inches wide.
The half-time whistle was greeted with silence. United fans could not quite believe what they had seen.
Yes this Villarreal side did beat them on penalties in last season’s Europa League Final.
They are a very good side who lost to Chelsea on penalties in the European Super Cup.
Since then they have drawn six and won one including an opening Group F draw to Atalanta.
They also could easily have beaten both La Liga champions Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid but drew with both.
So United were up against quality and a top manager in Unai Emery. Still it needed to be better than this.
As on Saturday against Aston Villa, Ronaldo just wasn’t getting on the ball.
Jadon Sancho had the off burst but we are still to see what commanded his £73million transfer fee, although it is early days.
Solskjaer continuously belies the slow starts his team produce but they aren’t responding to his pleas to get on the front foot.
United had David De Gea to thank for keeping them in the game with a string of great savesCredit: PA
Telles enjoyed his cracking volley at Old TraffordCredit: Getty
Would the second-half get better? Well not immediately as Villarreal took a deserved lead.
Manu Trigueros slipped the ball behind a hapless Dalot for Danjuma to fire to the near post and Alcacer strode between the two centre backs to side foot home from close range.
It was training ground stuff against the youth team, all too easy…
Then out of nowhere the Red Devils were level. They won a free kick outside the box next to the byline.
Fernandes ignored everyone in the area and pinged it to Telles standing 20 yards out unmarked.
He smacked it on the full with a tremendous angled volley that bounced past the goalkeeper and into the far bottom corner.
Old Trafford was now alive. On came Edinson Cavani and 11 minutes from time came his chance.
Mason Greenwood put a great cross into the far post and there was the veteran goalscorer, who somehow headed wide of a gaping goal.
There would be one more chance, there is always one more chance when it comes to United and that man Ronaldo took it.
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USAIN BOLT personally thanked Sir Alex Ferguson for Cristiano Ronaldo’s return as the sprint legend watched Manchester United comeback to beat Villarreal.Huge Red Devils’ fan Bolt was back at Old Trafford after a lengthy absence and made a beeline for Fergie.
The Red Devils were quick to mark to mark Usain Bolt’s latest appearance at Old Trafford, for Wednesday night’s Champions League tie vs Villarreal
Cristiano Ronaldo scored a stunning late winner as Man Utd completed a comeback to winCredit: EPA
Usain Bolt watched on nervously during United’s ding-dong tie with Villarreal
Legendary ex-United boss Ferguson helped secure 36-year-old Ron’s shock re-signing from Juventus on deadline.day.
And eight-time Olympic gold medallist Bolt was thrilled to finally see a United game as he is excited by Ron’s return.
He told United’s media team before kick-off: “He helped to build the club and it was wonderful when he was here, the energy. So I’m happy he’s back. 
“I just saw Alex Ferguson inside and I thanked him for bringing Cristiano back, so I’m happy about it.
“I’m happy to be here, I haven’t been back to Old Trafford in a while.
“So I’m just happy to be here in the stands with everybody to watch the game.”

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Bolt has already predicted Portugal and ex-Real Madrid frontman Ronaldo will play another six years.
The Jamaican told the BBC: “Cristiano demands a lot, so he will demand a lot from these players and it will only make them better. 
“He’s on a different level, he is a machine.
“I think he will play until he’s 42 because he will always be so fit and on a higher level to a lot of the younger players because of the work he puts in and the dedication he has.”
Bolt won’t have been disappointed by what he saw.

After Paco Alcacer gave Villarreal a deserved lead, Alex Telles equalised with a stunning volley.
As United pushed and pushed for a winner, it looked like they would have to settle for a point.
But then Ronaldo popped up in the 95th minute to fire home and send Old Trafford crazy.
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KEVIN DE BRUYNE was described as the worst player on the pitch as Manchester City lost to Paris Saint-Germain.The notoriously harsh player ratings dished out by French daily L’Equipe left the Belgian with a score of 3/10.
Lionel Messi (left) earned just a 6/10 rating from L’EquipeCredit: AFP
How L’Equipe rated the players on Tuesday evening
No City star earned more than a six from the ratings with several players hammered for the 2-0 defeat at Parc des Princes.
With Jack Grealish, Rodri and Raheem Sterling handed a 4/10 review, De Bruyne came out worst with a three.
Kept on for the whole 90 minutes by Pep Guardiola, the playmaker contributed a game-high three key passes but only two of his nine crosses were considered by the stats aggregators to be ‘good’.
Otherwise, his numbers were unspectacular but perhaps not dreadful as he made 31 successful passes, the second-lowest of the 20 outfield starters, and lost possession 18 times, the fourth-most overall.
De Bruyne was also booked for a first-half lunge on Idrissa Gueye.
It was the ex-Everton man who put PSG in front after only eight minutes, helping him notch an 8/10 in L’Equipe’s ratings along with Gianluigi Donnarumma and Marquinhos.

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City had plenty of chances to draw level as Sterling and Bernardo Silva both missed from close-range after a smart De Bruyne cross.
The 30-year-old and Sterling also failed to make second-half openings pay before Lionel Messi made it 2-0.
After a quiet game, the Argentine turned on the style for his first PSG goal – and was handed a 6/10 by L’Equipe for his troubles.
De Bruyne and Manchester City laboured to a 2-0 defeat in ParisCredit: Getty
The French paper wrote of his performance: “So that’s a genius.
“A player able to miss everything for 70 minutes, to multiply the bad choices, not to weigh on the offensive animation of his team if it is not by a few first passes in the heart of the game and, suddenly, to raise a stage on an acceleration and a divine strike.
“His first goal with Paris (on his only shot), in such a paradoxical evening, will remain his legend.”

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LIONEL MESSI has well and truly come back to haunt Pep Guardiola – with a record seven goals against his old boss.The Argentine hero, 34, broke his Paris Saint-Germain duck on Tuesday night with a stunning finish against Manchester City.
Lionel Messi scored his seventh goal past a Pep Guardiola defence on Tuesday nightCredit: Getty
The Argentine’s Champions League tally is a record against his former bossCredit: PA
He linked up expertly with Kylian Mbappe before curling a fine effort beyond Ederson into the top corner on 74 minutes.
As well as sealing a 2-0 Champions League win for his new club, it took his tally against Guardiola to seven.
And that is more goals than anyone else has managed against the former Barca manager in the competition.
Two of those came while Guardiola was at Bayern Munich – a double in a 3-0 Barca win in May 2015.
The remaining five are against the Citizens.
Messi smashed in a hat-trick at the Nou Camp in October 2016 as part of a 4-0 victory – the first treble any player had scored against a Guardiola team – and then scored in the reverse tie, a 3-1 defeat, the following month.

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His other two goals against City in the Champions League came in the last 16 in 2014 with a strike in both legs when Manuel Pellegrini was Etihad chief.
Messi played under Guardiola for four seasons at Barcelona between 2008 and 2012, winning three LaLigas and the Champions League twice.
In that time, the superstar forward also managed a bonkers 211 goals in 219 games.
No wonder Guardiola was desperate to bring Messi to the Etihad when his contract at Barcelona ran out this summer.
PSG boss Mauricio Pochettino, on the receiving end of Messi’s goals down the years, said on Tuesday: “Usually I don’t celebrate goals, but today I did.
“I’ve spent 20 years watching him score goals from the other side of the opposite pavement and it’s the first time he scores for a team I manage so I had to celebrate.”
However, while Messi has seven goals against Guardiola, Jamie Vardy has nine against the Spaniard.
No player has scored more against City since Pep took over in 2016 than the Leicester talisman.
Although his have been spread across the Premier League and League Cup – but do include two hat-tricks to surpass Messi’s tally of one.
Messi picked out the top corner to make it 2-0 on the nightCredit: EPA
He scored a whopping 211 goals in 219 matches under Guardiola at BarcelonaCredit: AFP
Jamie Vardy has nine goals against Pep Guardiola’s City – including two hat-tricksCredit: EPA
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AARON WAN-BISSAKA’S Champions League ban has been extended to two matches by UEFA. The 23-year-old was given a straight red card for going in with a stud-first tackle on Young Boy’s star Christopher Martins in United’s 2-1 loss against them last week.
Wan-Bissaka has been banned for two games for his red card against Young BoysCredit: Reuters
The full-back was given his marching orders for going in stud-first on Young Boys ace MartinsCredit: AFP
The full back was initially handed a mandatory one match ban for his recklessness, ruling him out of United’s European clash against Villarreal tonight.
But according to Sky Sports, the Englishman will now also miss the Red Devils Champions League game with Atalanta next month.
European football’s governing body slapped the ex-Crystal Palace defender with the extra game ban after charging him with ‘rough play’, journalist Simon Peach tweeted.
But United fans have slammed Uefa for having double standards after witnessing Manchester City star Kevin De Bruyne escape punishment for a similar challenge on an opponent in the Champions League.
The Belgian, 30, received a yellow for catching Paris Saint-Germain star Idrissa Gueye with his studs in City’s 2-0 loss to them last night, to the bemusement of the Old Trafford faithful.
They took to Twitter to vent their frustration with officials, and one tweeted: “Why wasn’t De Bruyne sent off?

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“Surely it was no different to Wan-Bissaka’s challenge?”
While another wrote: “How De Bruyne didn’t get a red when Wan-Bissaka did for near enough an identical challenge is beyond me.
“Where’s the consistency?”
And one fumed: “How has De Bruyne not been sent off for that? HOW?
“VAR is so inconsistent! Wan-Bissaka was sent off for a similar tackle, no questions asked. Unbelievable!”
Wan-Bissaka’s ban leaves United with limited defensive options going into their tie against Villarreal tonight.
Harry Maguire and Luke Shaw are also missing following their injuries in United’s 1-0 loss to Aston Villa at the weekend.
Left-back Alex Telles has just returned from injury but will most certainly get thrown in the deep end for the game to help fill the gaps in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s defence.
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ON Tuesday night in Paris, it was all about Lionel Messi. Of course it was.After 672 goals for Barcelona, a first one for Paris St Germain, and a classic Messi show-stopper to settle a Champions League match against Manchester City, their fellow filthy-rich arrivistes.
Lionel Messi, Neymar and Kylian Mbappe all played in PSG’s win over Man CityCredit: AFP
PSG flexed their muscles as they beat Man City 2-0 in a heavyweight showdownCredit: Getty
But Paris St Germain are not favourites to lift the European Cup in St Petersburg next May merely because of their little old GOAT – nor even his fellow Galacticos, Kylian Mbappe and Neymar.
Behind those three amigos, Pep Guardiola’s men found a serious-minded midfield and defence, as well as a goalkeeper, Gianluigi Donnarumma, who was England’s heartbreaker and the Player of the Tournament at the Euros.
Mauricio Pochettino still has much work to do to meld PSG into a formidable team unit – City were the better team for long stages of their 2-0 defeat at Parc des Princes.
But the former Tottenham boss has one of the mightiest squads ever assembled at his disposal.
Against City, Marco Verratti – another Italian who was key to denying Gareth Southgate’s men a trophy this summer – was magnificent in the midfield anchor role.
In front of him, former Premier League operators Ander Herrerra and Idrissa Gueye – who netted a belting opener – also have the defensive nous to counter-balance those flair merchants up top.
Gini Wijnaldum, whose absence is felt keenly at Liverpool, couldn’t make the starting line-up, and neither could Argentine Leandro Paredes, another world-class defensive midfielder.
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In defence, Presnel Kimpembe provided Raheem Sterling with a second skin in a man-marking which would have been the envy of a presidential bodyguard.
Kimpembe is a dirty-working old-school central defender, but he is not even the nastiest on Pochettino’s roster.
Sergio Ramos – Real Madrid’s long-term bastard-in-chief and bogeyman of Anfield after his hatchet job on Mo Salah in the 2018 final – also arrived in Paris this summer. When he is fit, he will make Paris even tougher to defeat.
The full-backs, Achraf Hakimi, a title-winner with Inter Milan last season, and the dynamic teenager Nuno Mendes, on loan from Sporting Lisbon, have improved PSG.
These two feel like proper Poch signings. When his Tottenham team came to prominence, Kyle Walker and Danny Rose were the best full-back pairing in the Premier League and he values strength in that area more than most coaches.
In his post-match press conference, Pochettino fielded many questions from the French press about having alleviated pressure on his job.
This despite PSG having won eight out of eight in Ligue 1 – seeing them nine points clear by the end of September.
Surrendering the title to Lille last term was ridiculous, given PSG’s financial might. Poch knows that regaining the domestic crown is an absolute non-negotiable.
Failure to defeat Bruges in their Champions League opener was treated like a crisis in the French capital.
That’s because the wealth of this club, state-funded by Qatar, is obscene – and it shows in their squad strength.
FFP? FFS, no.
Gianluigi Donnarumma and Presnel Kimpembe were impregnable at the backCredit: Reuters
Marco Verratti pulled the strings in midfield on Tuesday nightCredit: Getty
Argentine goal machine Mauro Icardi and his compatriot Angel Di Maria, a former Champions League final man of the match at Real Madrid, didn’t get a look in on Tuesday and neither did Julian Draxler, capped 56 times by Germany.
So while there have been two all-English Champions League finals in the last three seasons, and with Real Madrid, Barcelona and Juventus all weakened, Premier League clubs can never fully dominate Europe’s elite competition while PSG are allowed to stockpile so much talent.
There was plenty of talk before the City match over whether Pochettino – a demanding manager, who ran Spurs like a sweatshop and built such a unified team there – really was the man to lead this celebrity project in Paris.
But it is not as if his famous front three were swanning around performing like a free-form jazz trio all night against City.
While Neymar’s improv routines were over-indulgent at times, there was no absence of defensive work from Mbappe.
Messi, meanwhile, dropped deep into midfield, popped up as right-back cover and even acted as the ‘draft excluder’ in a defensive wall late on. Some prima donna.
Messi had been relatively quiet until that burst of pace, that one-two with the backheel of Mbappe, and that sumptuous finish which left Ederson frozen and almost broke the internet as it flashed across the globe.
It was Messi’s ‘welcome to Paris’ moment. The Parc went wild and the world took heed.
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