Champions League: Manchesters face tough time, Real in thrashing mood
LONDON: Real Madrid enjoyed a great night at Champions League on Tuesday but there was no such luck for English Premier League giants Manchester United and Manchester City.
Real Madrid outplayed Dinamo Zagreb by a huge margin of 6-2 to top Group D thanks to four goals in less than 20 minutes after the whistle.
Karim Benzema, Jose Callejon, Gonzalo Higuain, and Mesut Ozil scored once in the first 20 minutes to kick out Dinamo Zagreb of any contention right at the start and it was a one-way ride after that.
Callejon and Benzema added more misery in the lap of Dinamo Zagreb in second half before Fatos Beqiraj and Ivan Tomecak came up with consolation goals.
In another match played in Italy, Manchester City were stunned by Napoli 2-1 to leave them struggling to make their Champions League debut fruitful one as they will have to win the remaining matches to stay alive in the competition.
Edinson Cavani scored the two goals for Napoli but it was never an easy victory for the hosts as Manchester City came hard again and again but lacked luck at times to even the odds, especially in the later stages of the match.
Napoli went upfront in 17th minute before Mario Balotelli squared the odds in the 32nd minute, however Cavani once again showed his class in the 49th minute. After taking lead, Napoli went back in their defensive shell which helped Manchester City to play an attacking game but they fell short on every scoring opportunity after that.
Now the Manchester City will not only have to outdo group leaders Bayern Munich but they will also hope that Villarreal, who have tasted defeat in all of their five fixtures, hold on Napoli at least for a draw.
In the other match played on Tuesday night, Benfica held Manchester United to a 2-2 draw at Old Trafford as the Premier League champions are in a spot of bother in the early stages of the Champions League.
Now the Red Devils will have to survive FC Basle in Switzerland next month if they are to quality in the last-16 round and that would be as group runners-up.
In a game filled with freakish errors, Manchester United not only missed a number of goal-scoring opportunities but they also failed to avoid security lapse in the defence-line.
Benfica went right in front with an early goal but Dimitar Berbatov and Darren Fletcher let Manchester United come back strongly before a defence-line mistake helped Pablo Aimar snatch the equalizer. If that wasn’t enough, Michael Carrick was handed suspension after a huge foul later in the match.
Benfica have now qualified for the round of 16 as group toppers with this drawn match.
Rio Ferdinand made to face a disappointing night in Italy. Courtesy: Getty Images
David Silva. Courtesy: Getty Images
Karim Benzema, Gonzalo Higuain, Jose Callejon. Courtesy: Getty Images
Gonzalo Higuain. Courtesy: Getty Images
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