Manchester United’s dramatic last-minute win against Villarreal in the Champions League has marked the end of an unwanted run as they claim their first three points in the tournament.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer made wholesale changes in defence for the visit of Unai Emery’s side, with Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Harry Maguire, and Luke Shaw all unavailable.
The makeshift backline was obvious throughout the game but blushed were spared when Cristiano Ronaldo scored the decisive goal with four minutes of stoppage time played.
Prior to Wednesday’s game, United had drawn all five of their previous games against Villarreal (inside 90 minutes), only scoring one goal in the process.
#MUFC have never lost their opening two matches of a major European campaign in their history.
But they are winless in their last seven games against Spanish teams in the Champions League 😳
— Shamoon Hafez (@ShamoonHafez) September 29, 2021
Read more: “Not good enough” – some Man Utd fans are unhappy with player after Villarreal win
Furthermore, they were without a win against Spanish opposition in their last seven games in the Champions League – thankfully that run came to an end. The disappointing exit to Sevilla in 2018 rings to mind when you’re reminded of that uncomfortable statistic.
The euphoric victory puts United in good stead going into a double-header with Atalanta, having notched up three points from two games. Typically, double-digit hauls are required to go through to the next round and Solskjaer will back his side to reach that tally this season after missing out last year.
