Nothing is going well for the Red Devils. Manchester United lost to Bayern Munich (1-0) on Tuesday and left the Champions League with a fourth defeat in six games, the end of a disastrous group stage and finished in last place, where Europe end.
The English, however, put in the impact and determination needed to delight their supporters and make their German opponent doubt, at least until the break, but the magic never really worked in their “theater of dreams” of Old Trafford, whose nickname is starting to gather dust.
Bayern and Copenhagen qualified
Their hope of survival in the big European Cup hung by a thread on the final day: a victory against Bayern, undefeated for six years in the group stage, and a draw, at the same time, between Copenhagen and Galatasaray. They had neither one nor the other, and finished just behind the Turks (3rd, 5 points), as the red lantern (4th, 4 points) of a group enlightened by the omnipotence of the Bavarians ( 1st, 16 pts), qualified with Copenhagen (2nd, 8 pts) for the round of 16 of C1.
So here is Manchester United kicked out of all European competition, a real fiasco for the Glazer family and their club with three Champions League titles, engaged in a sales process which continues to drag on.
Tuesday, the players displayed a conquering face, despite the stakes of the evening and the twists of fate that accompanied it: central defender Harry Maguire had to come off injured at the end of the first period, and his French partner Raphaël Varane imitated him at the end of the second, probably also because of a physical problem. But the state of mind was not enough to counter Bayern’s strike force.
MU without consolation prize
The defense muzzled Harry Kane rather well, returning to England for the first time with his new club. But she gave in far too easily on a decisive pass from No.9 to Kingsley Coman (71st, 1-0), showing in one action the excitement too often displayed on the European scene.
Erik Ten Hag’s team therefore ends its adventure with four defeats and fifteen goals conceded in six matches, or 2.5 per match on average, the worst total in a group that was nevertheless quite open at the start. Above all, it does not even hold third place, synonymous with the play-offs in the Europa League.