FULL TIME: Rostov 1-1 Manchester United
There’s time for Fellaini to win a header in the Rostov box. He can’t quite get it on target, and he can’t quite find Martial next to him. And that’s your lot! Rostov were much improved in that second half, and deserve to come out of this with a draw. But United’s control in the first half earned them a crucial away goal, and so they’re looking good ahead of the return at Old Trafford next week. It wasn’t pretty, but the pitch was beyond awful, and that’s a good result for Jose Mourinho’s men. That elusive Fairs/Uefa/Europa pot could be theirs yet!
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90 min +2: United make a double change: Carrick and Valencia on, Blind and Herrera off.
90 min +1: There will be three added minutes. Pogba needlessly bundles over Gatskan by the left-hand corner flag. Poloz shoves Jones by the far post when the ball comes in, and the pressure’s off.
90 min: Rostov earn a corner down the right. Kalachev whips the ball into the centre. Fellaini sticks out a peg and sends it miles upfield. Here’s Simon Cherry: “Surely no talk of pies can be complete without the words of Colin Crompton as chairman at the Wheeltappers and Shunters Social Club ‘Pies have come. Put plenty of salt on them, they came on their own.’”
88 min: A bit of head tennis 35 yards from the United goal. Azmoun chests it down and back to Gatskan, who creams a curler towards the top left. It’s a fine hit, and on target, but Romero has read it well. Pluck!
87 min: A free kick for United out on the left. Blind takes. He swings it high into the Rostov area. Medvedev comes off his line and punches clear with purpose. He also gets the benefit of a free kick, his being a goalkeeper and all.
85 min: Poloz, deep on the Rostov left, sprays a fine ball down the channel for Azmoun to chase. He very nearly breaks clear of Jones. Very nearly, but not quite. Rostov earn a throw, and Erokhin claims to have been brought down by Jones near the dead-ball line. But he’s not getting the decision.
83 min: The game descends into stop-start nonsense for the first time in quite a while. United will be more than happy to see the clock tick on without incident.
81 min: Kalachev sends a low cross into the United box from the right. Azmoun traps and turns adroitly, and would have made space down the inside-right channel, between Smalling and Rojo, had the former not stuck out a toe at the very last. That was a neat little swivel, and it very nearly led to a chance.
80 min: Ibrahimovic chases a long hoof down the middle, then slips over in the silent-movie style on this banana skin of a pitch. For a second he looks seriously hurt, but he’s just winded himself. And he’s up and about. Mourinho’s heart would have been in his mouth there.
78 min: Herrera is booked for a naughty stamp on Poloz’s tootsies. He’s got the devil in him all right, has Herrera.
77 min: Blind hits it deep. The ball comes off the unwitting Mevlja’s arm, and out for a corner. United make a half-arsed claim for a penalty, but they don’t really believe in it. The corner comes to nothing.
76 min: Martial jigs around down the left and earns a free kick, his skills drawing Noboa into a rash challenge. A free kick in a very dangerous position, just to the left of the Rostov box. A chance for United to load the area.
74 min: The very promising young Iranian Sardar Azmoun comes on for the Rostov goalscorer Bukharov. Meanwhile Ibrahimovic has a dig from distance, but it’s always heading wide left, and Medvedev smothers.
73 min: Kalachev cuts inside from the right and looks to curl one into the top left. It’s not miles away, but never threatening to go in.
72 min: Kalachev is booked for hanging out a foot in the midfield. He’s now suspended for the second leg. He’s been Rostov’s best player by some distance; that could be a decisive moment in this tie.
70 min: United need to take care here. Poloz chases after an agricultural hoof down the right. Rojo was on point, and took the ball off Poloz when the Rostov man miscontrolled slightly. But otherwise the visitors were light at the back. They’re sitting comfortably right now, with that away goal in their back pocket. They won’t want to let the situation slip with some more uncharacteristically lax defending.
68 min: Mkhitaryan, returning from injury, isn’t risked any longer. He’s hooked in favour of Martial.
67 min: And now a set piece for Rostov. A free kick, deep on the right. Kalachev takes. Mevlja eyebrows it on from the edge of the D. Navas, coming in from the left, meets the dropping ball and blams a volley miles over the bar. This half is a hundred times more entertaining than the first. Good end-to-end fare.
66 min: A corner for United down the left. It’s sent into the Rostov area. Fellaini rises on the penalty spot and wins a fine header, but he plants it straight at Medvedev.
65 min: Poloz busies himself on the right-hand edge of the United box. Drawing two men towards him, he flicks the ball inside for Erokhin, who suddenly bursts clear into space! He’s one on one with Romero, albeit at a tight angle. Instead of a calm dink, he attempts a strange curler with the outside of his boot, looking for the top left. That flies well wide, and at some pace. A decent chance spurned.
63 min: Blind goes tearing down the left. He’s stopped in his tracks by Mevlja’s telescopic leg. No foul, though Mourinho wants one. And it’s no foul up the other end, as Erokhin breaks into the United box on the right and goes over. But Smalling’s blocked the ball against him, causing him to fall, and that’s the correct decision as well.
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61 min: This pitch is a joke. Ibrahimovic nearly goes over on his ankle, then disappears in a cloud of dust as he falls to the floor. That’s not normal. United will be hoping to get through this evening without any injuries.
59 min: Noboa is booked for attempting to circumvent Herrera with a cheeky dinked handball. Herrera boots him as he runs past, too, so it’s a double whammy of punishment for the Rostov midfielder.
57 min: It’s all a bit scrappy again as both teams try to recalibrate their noggins. In the meantime, here’s Paul Ewart with a marvellous anecdote for those of you who enjoyed your half-time reading: “How important are pies in Wigan? David Barnett asks. I’ll tell you. My Dad played in a pysch-rock band in the 60s. Once, when playing nearby Billinge Higher End Labour Club, he was perplexed to find the PA turned off mid set by the owner of said club who proudly announced ‘Meat Pies ‘ave come.’ That’s how important pies are in Wigan and its environs. They literally stop the music.”
55 min: Really not sure what Jones and Smalling were doing for the goal. They’d fallen asleep. Which is not to talk down Kalachev’s pass or Bukharov’s finish, both of which were sublime. But the defending wasn’t up to much there. Huge gaps in the middle of the United back line.
GOAL! Rostov 1-1 Manchester United (Bukharov 53)
Well this came out of nothing! Kalachev, in the centre circle, wedges a delightful ball down the middle of the park. Bukharov strides into the area, chests it down, and guides it into the bottom left with Romero planted. So simple! And suddenly the volume at the Olimp 2 is turned up to 11!
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52 min: Blind scampers into acres down the left. He slips a pass inside for Ibrahimovic, who dummies and lets it run for Young. Young meets the pass and shoots wildly right of the target from the edge of the box.
51 min: Poloz has a chance to spring Kalachev free down the right, but his ball forward is charged down by Blind. Signs that the hosts have come out with a more attacking mindset, though. They really need a couple of goals tonight; you can’t see them winning at Old Trafford.
49 min: Gatskan strokes a long ball down the right. Poloz, on the edge of the area, slides a pass across the front of the United box. It’s an opportunity for Noboa to take a belt, but he falls over when attempting to connect.
47 min: Ibrahimovic drops a shoulder to breeze inside from the left wing. He looks to whack a spectacular curler into the top right, but the effort is high and wild.
46 min: Gatskan, out on the right, hooks a cross into the United box. There are no yellow shirts within a mile of it, and Romero claims easily. On the touchline, a very large satisfied smile plays across Mourinho’s face. He’s earned the right. It’s all going to plan so far.
Here we go again, then! No changes. United get the ball rolling for the second half. They launch it long, and the wind takes it out for a goal kick. The only way is up! But then we said that at the start of the first half, and look what happened there.
A tasty half-time snack: “Pies are always fully encased in pastry, none of this slop with a crust only on top. They can be meat and potato or steak. If you’re vegetarian you can have a chicken pie, I suppose.”
HALF TIME: Rostov 0-1 Manchester United
Kalachev slips a ball down the right wing, sending Gatskan into the United area. Gatskan hits Rojo with his cross, and the ball clatters back into his face and out for a goal kick. The final indignity of a dreadful half for the hosts. In terms of entertainment and excitement, that was beyond appalling. But Manchester United won’t care. In tricky conditions, they’ve been in total control, and thoroughly deserve their lead. A professional masterclass, in fact, the sort of display you suspect Jose Mourinho enjoys the most.
44 min: Bukharov stamps on Rojo’s foot. It’s a fairly unpleasant challenge, and he’s lucky not to go in the book. (Ah, tell a lie, he is yellow carded for that.)
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43 min: Terentyev clatters Pogba to the ground down the right wing. Free kick. Herrera sends a daft, high, swerving cross-cum-shot into the Rostov box. It nearly swirls over Medvedev’s head, but the keeper stays calm and plucks the ball from the sky on his goalline. You can see one of those catching the wind and embarrassing a keeper tonight.
41 min: ... which comes to nothing.
40 min: A free kick for Rostov out on the left, and an opportunity to load the United box. Kalachev curls in a hopeless set piece, allowing Romero to once again claim easily. United go up the other end, Pogba breaking down the left and winning a corner ...
39 min: The goal appears to have encouraged Rostov to crank it up a bit. Kalachev makes his way down the right and dinks a cross into the middle. Terentyev, rushing in from deep, tries to Steve Nicol a long-range header into the top right. But this is not Highbury 1987. Romero gathers with a yawn.
37 min: Straight from the restart, Erokhin bustles down the right, the ball breaking infield to Noboa, who shoots from distance while falling backwards. Romero claims easily.
GOAL! Rostov 0-1 Manchester United (Mkhitaryan 35)
Something’s happened now! A long ball down the left. Fellaini takes it down brilliantly, and shuttles it down the channel for Ibrahimovic, who reaches the byline after tearing past Navas, and pulls back into the centre for Mkhitaryan. It’s a simple side-foot tap-in. They’ve been the better side, and now they’ve got that important away goal!
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33 min: Fellaini, to the left of the Rostov D, flicks the ball over his head and into the box. The ball nearly curls into the path of Mkhitaryan, free on the penalty spot, but Medvedev is quickly off his line to pluck the ball from danger. On another evening, one of these half-chances would have fallen correctly for United in the Rostov area, and the visitors would have a precious away goal. But though they’ve been the more progressive side, nothing’s happened for them yet.
32 min: Blind and Ibrahimovic combine crisply down the left, one of the few successful passing combinations in this match so far. But Ibrahimovic, in space, blooters his cross into the first man.
30 min: The wind is turning this into a shapeless nonsense, truth be told. Manchester United will be happy enough with the way things are going, though; Rostov have barely troubled them at all.
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28 min: A rare attack by the home side. Poloz, who has looked sprightly, zips down the right and hoicks a cross into the United mixer towards Bukharov. The offside flag goes up.
26 min: Blind earns a corner down the left off Mevlja. Smalling and Kudryashov go down on the penalty spot, hugging each other. That could be a foul either way. It goes to the home side. You’ve seen penalties given for that.
25 min: A yellow card for the captain Gatskan, who clatters Ibrahimovic in the midfield. He was late and can’t complain too much.
23 min: After some dental examination on the touchline, Kudryashov is back on. Jose Mourinho predicted a physical encounter, and he’s been spot on so far.
22 min: Mkhitaryan is booked for hanging an arm out and catching Kudryashov on the jaw with his elbow. That wasn’t an Ibra-style swing with a leading point; it looked clumsy rather than intentional. But the Rostov man is some pain, holding his chin and grimacing.
20 min: Poloz hooks a pass down the left wing for Bukharov, who is able to charge into the United box. Bukharov takes a whack from a tight angle, but it’s blocked by Smalling at the expense of a corner. The set piece comes to nothing, Romero claiming with confidence in the swirling wind.
18 min: But Granat looked to have fallen heavily on his shoulder in that little episode with Mkhitaryan. He’s replaced by Terentyev.
17 min: A rare attack for Rostov, Poloz skittering down the left before sending a high cross miles behind the goal. A bobble at fault there. United have certainly been the sharper going forward.
15 min: Mkhitaryan bowls Granat to the ground as the pair chase a long ball down the right. Rostov want disciplinary measures but there was nothing much in that and the referee agrees. We move on.
13 min: Fellaini very nearly finds Mkhitaryan free on the penalty spot. Not quite. Young recycles the ball on the right, and crosses deep. Fellaini and Ibrahimovic get in each other’s way at the far post. Mkhitaryan clatters Erokhin, and that’s a free kick that relieves the pressure.
12 min: It’s still all very scrappy. The wind is whipping the ball around in manic fashion. It’s not conducive to attractive play.
10 min: Ibrahimovic, on the left corner of the Rostov box, hooks inside and nearly finds Pogba in the centre. Rostov half clear. The perpetually scrapping Herrera challenges for a loose ball, and accidentally, but clumsily, kicks Bukharov in the face. The ref has a quiet word, and the two players shake hands. No drama.
8 min: Erokhin cuts in from the right wing with purpose. For a second it looks as though he’s going to romp into space, and make good for the United box, but Smalling arrives out of nowhere, stepping in to block, and winning a free kick to boot.
7 min: Pogba battles down the right wing and earns a free kick off Granat, who shoulder-charges clumsily. A chance for United to load the box. Mkhitaryan loops it long, towards the far post. The wind catches the ball and sends it on an arc towards the top left, but Medvedev adjusts his position well to claim the high cross. Just for a second, that looked like catching the Rostov keeper seriously off guard.
6 min: United are playing with three at the back: Smalling, Jones and Rojo. They pass it hither and yon, always in control, though it doesn’t look too pretty as the ball bobbles around on the undulating pitch.
4 min: It’s a high-tempo start. Pinball stylings. No discernible pattern to the match yet.
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2 min: Noboa, down the inside-left channel but a fair way out, sends an ambitious shot gliding straight towards Romero. United respond by going up the other end and nearly scoring, Young causing trouble down the right and finding Pogba on the right-hand corner of the six-yard box. Pogba revisits the dying seconds of the Bournemouth game by failing to connect properly; the whiff is cleared by Gatcan.
And we’re off! The hosts get the ball rolling, and there’s a rare old atmosphere in the Olimp 2 stadium. The ball swirls around in the wind awhile; nobody can get control of the thing. The only way is up!
The teams are out! The hosts Rostov are in their second-choice yellow kit as opposed to first-choice blue. Manchester United are able to gallivant around the shop in their famous red. It’s dark, windy and very cold. We’ll be off in a minute! “Is Tom Tomsk’s poor form this season due to a lack of rhythm in their play?” wonders preamble reader Dave Wall. Either that or a lack of direction.
The state of the pitch: It’s uneven, bald in patches, and there are tyre marks all over it. The groundsman appears to have been wheelspinning around in his tractor like billy-o. “We don’t want to speak about the pitch now, it is not time for that,” shrugs Jose Mourinho. “Yesterday, yes. Not now. We have to realise we have to adapt. We have to try to create a team to fight against a hard opponent, and hard conditions. They are very difficult opponents. We try to be solid, to be competitive. We need a result that will allow us an opportunity to reach the quarter final in the second leg. This is not a passing game, it is not a game for creation. We will be direct and fight, let’s go for it.”
While we wait ... it’s been a fairly eventful week in Europe already, what with Borussia Dortmund seeing off Benfica, Real Madrid putting Napoli out of their misery, and a couple of other results too. Here’s the latest edition of Football Weekly. Quick, quick, you’ll be done by kick-off, give or take a quarter of an hour.
Rostov make one change from the XI sent out to thrash Tom Tomsk last Friday. Dimitriy Poloz replaces Sardar Azmoun up front.
United name seven different starters from the Bournemouth game last Saturday. Sergio Romero, Chris Smalling, Daley Blind, Ashley Young, Ander Herrera, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Marouane Fellaini are back in. David de Gea, Antonio Valencia, Michael Carrick, Juan Mata and Anthony Martial drop to the bench, with Wayne Rooney and Luke Shaw out of it completely.
The teams
Rostov: Medvedev, Kalachev, Mevlja, Cesar Navas, Granat, Kudryashov, Noboa, Erokhin, Gatcan, Poloz, Bukharov.
Subs: Goshev, Terentjev, Kireev, Bayramyan, Azmoun, Prepelita.
Manchester United: Romero, Rojo, Jones, Smalling, Blind, Ander Herrera, Pogba, Fellaini, Mkhitaryan, Young, Ibrahimovic.
Subs: de Gea, Mata, Martial, Lingard, Carrick, Rashford, Valencia.
Referee: Felix Zwayer (Germany).
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Good afternoon!
Manchester United’s quest to land the one European trophy that eludes them shouldn’t come off the rails in Rostov-on-Don. They’re one of the form teams in Europe, having lost just one game in their last 27 matches in all competitions. That run has included the lifting of the League Cup, and four straight wins in the Europa League to an aggregate score of ten goals to nil. Before last weekend’s slightly strange draw at Old Trafford with Bournemouth, they’d won their last six matches straight. Confidence is high. Jose Mourinho isn’t finished quite yet, is he?
But take nothing for granted. Rostov might be a mid-table proposition in the Russian league, but their home form in Europe this season is worthy of respect. They beat Bayern Munich 3-2 in the Champions League group stage, and stuck four past Sparta Prague in the last round of the Europa. They’re coming off the back of a 6-0 win in the league, admittedly against bottom side Tom Tomsk. And the pitch at their Olimp 2 stadium is an affectionate tribute to the Baseball Ground of the 1970s.
Additionally, United’s record against Russian sides in European competition is slightly odd. On the one hand, they’ve only lost one game to a side from Russia in nine meetings: a 2-1 defeat to Zenit in the 2008 Super Cup final, which was played on neutral territory in Monaco. But their knockout record against Russian sides is dismal: they lost a penalty shoot-out against Torpedo Moscow in the 1992/93 Uefa Cup, and were sent packing on away goals by Rotor Volgograd in the same competition three years later. This slightly lop-sided ancient history shouldn’t weigh too heavily on United’s collective consciousness ... but you never know in football.
United are also 2,100 miles from home. “It is a bad draw in every aspect,” sighs Mourinho. “It is far, it is difficult and comes in a bad period for us. They are a very difficult team.” The loss of the suspended Eric Bailly doesn’t help. But it’s not all bad news for United. Zlatan Ibrahimovic just can’t stop scoring goals, and disciplinary trouble at home means he’s free to concentrate all his efforts on this tie. And there’s a chance United’s best player, the beyond-brilliant Henrikh Mkhitaryan, could return after hamstring bother. So this promises to be a fascinating encounter. It’s very much on!
Kick off: 9pm in south-west Russia, 6pm back in north-west England.
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