'Insanely bad': Utd struggles hit new low with home defeat, Arsenal ...

4 Oct 2023

Fox Sports

Manchester United are in danger of making an early exit from the Champions League after crashing to a 3-2 home defeat to Galatasaray with Arsenal also suffered a shock loss on Wednesday morning.

UEFA Champions League - Figure 1 — Photo Fox Sports

Rasmus Hojlund twice put United in front, but they slipped to a sixth defeat in nine games as Wilfried Zaha, Kerem Akturkoglu and Mauro Icardi struck for the Turkish giants.

It continues a worrying run of form under Erik ten Hag for United, who are bottom of the group and 10th in the Premier League having lost six of their past 10 games.

United have lost their opening two games of a Champions League group for the first time.

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New goalkeeper Andre Onana had another night to forget in Europe. Rasmus Hojlund twice gave United the lead, but Galatasaray fought back to win away from home in the Champions League for the first time in 10 years thanks to goals from Wilfried Zaha, Kerem Akturkoglu and Mauro Icardi.

Onana accepted responsibility after his error allowed Bayern Munich to open the scoring in United’s 4-3 defeat in Germany to start Group A.

The Cameroonian was at fault once more for the move that saw Casemiro sent-off for conceding a penalty on 77 minutes.

Icardi missed the spot-kick, but quickly made amends to score the winner against 10 men.

United’s 1-0 defeat at home to Crystal Palace on Saturday meant Erik ten Hag’s men are also off to their worst ever start to a Premier League season with four defeats from seven games.

Progress to the last 16 of the Champions League now looks an uphill task. Bayern beat FC Copenhagen 2-1 away to move onto six points with Galatasaray four clear of United with four games to play.

Hojlund provided the one note of positivity on an otherwise costly night for United.

The young Danish striker’s start to life at Old Trafford was hampered by a back injury, but he is quickly showing why United splashed out £64 million for a 20-year-old.

Meanwhile Arsenal slumped to a first defeat of the season as Lens came from behind to win a pulsating Champions League clash 2-1 in France thanks to a fine second-half strike by Elye Wahi.

Gabriel Jesus gave the Premier League side an ideal start when he opened the scoring in the 14th minute to silence a raucous Stade Bollaert.

But Adrien Thomasson soon brought last season’s Ligue 1 runners-up back on level terms and the visitors saw Bukayo Saka limp off before half-time.

Wahi, the 20-year-old striker who became Lens’ club-record signing when he joined at the start of the campaign, then fired home in the 69th minute and his side held on for a famous victory.

The result lifts them above Arsenal to the top of Champions League Group B on four points, one above Mikel Arteta’s side.

The other game in the group on Tuesday saw PSV Eindhoven and Sevilla draw 2-2 in the Netherlands.

While Arsenal are back in the Champions League after six seasons away, Lens are appearing in Europe’s elite club competition again for the first time in over 20 years.

That made their first European home game of the campaign all the more special, especially as it came against a team Lens famously beat in the Champions League back in 1998.

Arsene Wenger’s Gunners had been the clear favourites against Lens quarter of a century ago and Arteta’s team were here, as they arrived in northern France still unbeaten this season.

They underlined their status as the leading contenders in the group with a 4-0 demolition of PSV in their opening game, while Lens had taken heart from their performance in coming back to draw 1-1 away to Sevilla.

LENS, FRANCE - OCTOBER 03: Neiss Nelson of Arsenal clashes with Salis Abdul Samed of Lens during the UEFA Champions League match between RC Lens and Arsenal FC at Stade Bollaert-Delelis on October 03, 2023 in Lens, France. (Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images)Source: Getty ImagesLens' players react after winning the UEFA Champions League Group B first leg football match between RC Lens and Arsenal FC at the Bollaert Stadium in Lens, northern France, on October 3, 2023. (Photo by Sameer Al-Doumy / AFP)Source: AFP

REAL MADRID 3 NAPOLI 2

Alex Meret’s unfortunate own goal handed Real Madrid a 3-2 win at Napoli on Wednesday which moved the Spanish giants top in Champions League Group C.

Italian international goalkeeper Meret could do nothing to stop Federico Valverde’s powerful, deflected shot crashing out off the bar and back into the goal off his outstretched arm 12 minutes from the end of an entertaining clash in Naples.

That unlucky rebound maintained Madrid’s perfect start to the group stage and moved them three points clear of both the Italian champions and Braga, 3-2 winners over bottom side Union Berlin earlier on Tuesday.

Vinicius Junior and Jude Bellingham scored the away side’s other goals on former Napoli coach Carlo Ancelotti’s return to southern Italy, giving Madrid a half-time lead after Leo Ostigard headed the hosts into a 19th-minute lead.

Piotr Zielinski had given Napoli hope that they could build on a recent burst of good form when he smashed in a 54th-minute penalty harshly given for a Nacho handball while challenging Victor Osimhen.

Nigeria forward Osimhen was playing for Napoli after backing supporters following a row with the club over an insulting video on social media, telling his countrymen that they were not racist.

UEFA Champions League results on Wednesday (AEST):

Group A

In Manchester, England Manchester United (ENG) 2 (Hojlund 17, 67) Galatasaray (TUR) 3 (Zaha 23, Akturkoglu 71, Icardi 81)

In Copenhagen FC Copenhagen (DEN) 1 (Lerager 56) Bayern Munich (GER) 2 (Musiala 67, Tel 83)

Group B

In Lens, France Lens (FRA) 2 (Thomasson 25, Wahi 69) Arsenal (ENG) 1 (Jesus 14)

In Eindhoven, Netherlands PSV Eindhoven (NED) 2 (De Jong 86-pen, Teze 90+5) Sevilla (ESP) 2 (Gudelj 68, En-Nesyri 87)

Group C

In Naples, Italy Napoli (ITA) 2 (Ostigard 19, Zielinski 54-pen) Real Madrid (ESP) 3 (Vinicius 27, Bellingham 34, Meret 78-og)

In Berlin Union Berlin (GER) 2 (Becker 30, 37) Braga (POR) 3 (Niakate 41, Bruma 51, Castro 90+4)

Group D

In Milan, Italy Inter Milan (ITA) (Thuram 62) 1 Benfica (POR) 0