Man Utd rode their luck at times against Wolfsburg but a Michael Owen hat-trick eventually saw off the German champions.
Depleted United ride their luck in Germany but seal top spot
Manchester United rode their luck at times against Wolfsburg but a Michael Owen hat-trick eventually saw off the German champions 3-1.
United began the game with Patrice Evra, captain for the night, as their only recognised defender as Park Ji-Sung slotted in at right-back and Michael Carrick and Darren Fletcher partnered each other in central defence.
Wolfsburg knew a win would seal their place in the knockout stages while a point for United would secure them top spot in the group.
As you would expect with the Red Devils' makeshift backline Wolfsburg looked threatening going forward and should have taken the lead on 17 minutes when Andrea Barzagli headed over when unmarked from five yards.
Wolfsburg threatened again four minutes later when a cross from the right was met by Zvjezdan Misimovic, who had peeled off Fletcher, but his header went over the top of the bar while Grafite will feel hard done by when his shouts for a penalty, when Carrick slid in, were waved away.
Opener
Just as it looked like United were heading into the break on level terms they went one better and took the lead. Nani turned inside and delivered a superb cross for Owen who duly nodded home the opener.
As you would expect Wolfsburg came out of the blocks quickly at the start of the second period as news of CSKA Moscow's opener at Besiktas begin to filter through, knocking Wolfsburg out in the process.
The German crowd did not have to wait long before they were back on level terms and the pressure that had been building on the United goal since the interval finally told.
Marcel Schafer, as he had done all night, bombed down the left and produced a fantastic cross which Edin Dzeko, who has been linked with a move to Old Trafford last week, powered past Thomas Kuszczak with his head.
However with CSKA still leading the hosts knew 1-1 would not be enough and they continued to pepper the United goal with Grafite, Misimovic and Dzeko all testing Kuszczak.
Sir Alex Ferguson's men failed to keep the ball for prolonged periods and you began to wonder whether their makeshift backline could hold out but then, against the run of play, Owen struck once more with seven minutes remaining.
Dazzled
Second-half substitute Gabriel Obertan dazzled his marker on the left before jinking into the area. The Frenchman had the awareness to get his head up and scour the area and decided upon Owen at the back-post who only had to slide home the drilled centre into an empty net.
The goal knocked the stuffing out of hosts but news soon began to spread through that Besiktas had equalised against CSKA meaning Wolfsburg needed just one goal to qualify for the last-16.
Schafer again attacked down the left and his low centre was missed by Sascha Riether when just yards from goal.
It was to prove costly as United immediately went down the other end as Owen, who minutes before had missed a chance to secure his hat-trick, ran half the length of the pitch before dinking over the onrushing Diego Benaglio to secure his treble.
| VfL Wolfsburg |
Team Statistics |
Manchester United |
| 1 |
Goals |
3 |
| 0 |
1st Half Goals |
1 |
| 9 |
Shots on Target |
4 |
| 8 |
Shots off Target |
4 |
| 2 |
Blocked Shots |
2 |
| 10 |
Corners |
1 |
| 10 |
Fouls |
8 |
| 4 |
Offsides |
6 |
| 0 |
Yellow Cards |
0 |
| 0 |
Red Cards |
0 |
| 87.8 |
Passing Success |
86.7 |
| 14 |
Tackles |
16 |
| 85.7 |
Tackles Success |
68.8 |
| 47.2 |
Possession |
52.8 |
| 60.2 |
Territorial Advantage |
39.8 |
|
