- Manchester United loses the final group game in the Champions League against Bayern Munich 0-1.
- In the parallel game in Group A, Copenhagen won the direct duel against Galatasaray Istanbul for the round of 16 ticket 1-0.
- While the Turks will still be in the Europa League as a consolation, the European Cup season is over for the English.
Condemned to win and at the same time dependent on support – the starting position for Manchester United before the final group game against Bayern could not have been much more uncomfortable.
As if a win against Munich, who had already won the group before the game, wasn’t a challenge enough, the “Red Devils” had to hope for a draw in the parallel game between Copenhagen and Galatasaray Istanbul. This was the only way they could have overtaken both teams in the table.
A little spoiler ahead: it stayed with the subjunctive. On the one hand, the English suffered a defeat at home against Bayern. On the other hand, the game in the Danish capital did not end in a draw, but with Copenhagen as the winner.
A debacle like 2005
The European Cup season is now over for Manchester United. The last time this mishap happened to the English record champions was in 2005. As the bottom of the group, the English also missed out on taking part in the Europa League.
While the “Red Devils” quietly said goodbye to the “premier class”, the Munich team moved into the knockout round with the recommendation of 40 preliminary round games without defeat. The only goalscorer at Old Trafford was Kingsley Coman (70th), who scored clearly into the left corner after a pass from Harry Kane. The first half was characterized by many duels but few chances to score.
Copenhagen ends a long dry spell
FC Copenhagen grabbed the second round of 16 ticket in Group A. The Danes survived the group stage of the Champions League for the first time since the 2010/11 season. Copenhagen also needed a bit of luck in their 1-0 home win against Galatasaray. The guests from Turkey were the better team overall and came close to equalizing several times in the final phase.
The red card against Lukas Lerager made matters worse. The Danish goalscorer, who had used a counterattack to make it 1-0 after just under an hour, was shown a yellow card twice within 5 minutes and was sent off the pitch (85th/90th). The home team’s defense also withstood the Turkish attacks in stoppage time.