After going 1-0 down to German side, VfL Wolfsburg, Manchester United went all out attack. The Red Devils relentlessly bombarded the Wolsfburg box in search of a goal.
United’s first goal came when Juan Mata’s cross struck the hand of Wolfsburg’s goal scorer, Daniel Caligiuri, in the box. Mata set and scored the penalty.
The Spaniard then pulled out a crafty little back heel flick, to send the ball over the Wolfsburg defence, to meet the foot of Chris Smalling, who scored with a very nice finish.
Speaking to MUTV, Chris Smalling praised Juan Mata’s skill:
“It was a great feeling and, with Juan, you never know what he’s going to do with those tricks and flicks; he does them every day in training. You just have to gamble.”
Manchester United’s first UEFA Champions League win saw the Reds going very defensive late in the game, to hold out for the 3 points.
Chris Smalling has pointed out areas in which United need to improve their game:
“I think we made it difficult for ourselves and we could probably learn to manage and control games a little bit better in those last 10 minutes,
“If you drop 10 yards deeper you invite that pressure. We held on and we deserved the three points. Our heads could have dropped after Memphis and Mata had very good chances but we kept attacking.”
Phil Jones made another substitute appearance, to aid his return to fitness. Smalling is very happy to see him and McNair coming back from injury:
“It’s great to see him back and Paddy [McNair] on the bench. It’s good to know we’ve got numbers because this next month is going to be crucial to our season: we’ve got some tough away games.”
Chris Smalling will have a tough job this weekend, fending off Olivier Giroud or Theo Walcott, when Manchester United travel to the Emirates.
