Cristiano Ronaldo came to the rescue for Manchester United yet again this evening as two goals from the 36-year-old rescued a point for his side against Atalanta in Italy.
The home side took an early lead in the game and after Ronaldo finished off a beautiful team move but La Dea restored their lead shortly after half-time following a lengthy VAR check.
It looked like Gian Piero Gasperini’s side would steal all three points but Ronaldo, who always comes up with the goods in the big moments, scored a sumptuous volley in stoppage time.
The result means United remain in the driving seat in their Champions League group when they make the trip to Spain for the next match against Villarreal.
"We believe until the end."
Cristiano Ronaldo is elite.
🎙 @TheDesKelly pic.twitter.com/C1SspxVg9w
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) November 2, 2021
Read more: Pogba disaster, Ronaldo masterclass: player ratings from Atalanta 2-2 Man Utd
“It was a difficult game,” he told BT Sport after the game, as seen above. “I know that when we play in Bergamo against Atalanta it’s always difficult but we believe until the end.
“I help my team to do it, one point, and I’m so happy. We never give up, we believe until the end – it’s a good result for us I think.
“It the beginning, it was tough. We knew that Atalanta would do a lot of pressure. They have a fantastic coach, they know what to do all the time on the pitch.
“When I play at Juventus, they were always difficult to play against. But I think we do our job, we defend well and we had a little bit of luck that I score a goal but this is football.
“We have to still improve. As I said many times, we have different players, different systems, the football is different. We have to adapt with each other but it will take time. In my opinion, we have time to improve and be better.”
SN’s verdict on Ronaldo’s two-goal show…
It was yet another evening when there are not enough superlatives to describe this man. Ronaldo’s second goal means that he has now scored nine goals and assisted once in his first 11 appearances since returning to the club – a remarkable record.
Scrutiny on the manager is unlikely to go away just yet but if Ronaldo continues to perform at this level, his sheer brilliance alone could push United to where they want to be.
Tonight’s late goal was the latest in a string of dramatic impacts by Ronaldo. In the reverse meeting, he scored the winner with just nine minutes remaining on the clock. Two weeks prior to that meeting, he scored a 95th-minute winner against Atalanta.
Quite simply, Ronaldo steps up when his team needs him the most and at the moment, it’s at the end of hard-fought games.
