Ronaldo seals Manchester United thrilling comeback victory over Atalanta

Manchester United is still a nerve-wracking possibility that can't seem to keep a game under control. But they're still a box-office draw, having stunk up the first half before putting on a performance that included Cristiano Ronaldo heading in the winner with minutes to go. Even if it wasn't as late as his clincher against Villarreal, it elicited the same mix of relief, excitement, and astonishment from supporters, and when the final whistle blew, the No 7's sink-to-the-knees and fist-pump exemplified exactly what winning meant.

While Atalanta is no longer in first place in Group F, and United has six points from three games, worries about Ole Gunnar Solskjr's team's ability to win will linger. If this was another Old Trafford night to scoff at, the manager will be hoping to put an end to it.

"At the first half, we allowed two poor goals in two big times," Harry Maguire, who scored the equaliser, remarked. We deserved to win in the end. Yes, we made it difficult for ourselves, but it's a fantastic victory, and we showed wonderful unity in the locker room at halftime."

Following the 4-2 defeat against Leicester, Solskjr reacted by benching Paul Pogba, Nemanja Matic, and Jadon Sancho in favour of Fred, Scott McTominay, and Marcus Rashford in an attempt to record a second win in the competition against opponents who had thrashed Empoli 4-1 the day before.

Despite an offside flag, the Norwegian's declared intention for United was to start on the front foot, and when McTominay unleashed Rashford, Atalanta were cautioned. However, United's poor start proved to be a foregone conclusion. The truer omen came when Davide Zappacosta burst from the right and destroyed the home defence until Maguire blocked the forward.

As Joakim Mhle, José Luis Palomino, and Mario Pasalic tapped the ball around and Luis Muriel pressed enthusiastically off the front, Gian Piero Gasperini's men were a river of pass-and-move. United couldn't seem to find a rhythm, as evidenced by Mason Greenwood's feeding of Bruno Fernandes, who overcooked a 40-yard ball targeted towards Rashford.

United dozed off after fifteen minutes. With no one following him, Josip Ilicic feed Zappacosta and crossed from the right to a lurking Pasalic who slid home. Cut to a glum-faced Solskjr, who may have been perplexed as to where all of the training ground teaching had vanished.

This was a serious test for a team whose self-assurance had been shaken. The response was initially positive, as Ronaldo scooped over a ball that Fred smacked hard, forcing Juan Musso to make a save.

In a period that energised the crowd, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Rashford, Ronaldo, Fernandes, and Greenwood took on their opponents. United were breached too easily once again, resulting in disappointment. Merih Demiral headed in after Teun Koopmeiners swung a corner over from the right, Shaw and Maguire dozed, David de Gea failed to come and punch, and Teun Koopmeiners swung a corner over from the right.

United were on the verge of collapsing into a disaster. The truth was that Atalanta had never participated in an exhibition game. They only explored Solskjr's crew and discovered it to be frail. United's performance was summed up by Fred's missed chance as the halftime whistle approached. Rashford's strike, which just cleared the crossbar, looked more promising. The boos that accompanied the half-time whistle, though, were not among them.

The next 45 minutes were important for Solskjr and United, who were staring down the barrel of another humiliating defeat. The margin should have been cut to one goal when Ronaldo grabbed on to a Fernandes ball, but he shot straight at Musso, causing Solskjr to grumble. Before the fans who had returned to supporting their club, United was able to exert some persistent pressure. Rashford demonstrated his bravery by scoring a game-winning goal. Fernandes' pass was perfect, allowing the No. 10 to run ahead, and Musso's finish was cool, going in at the far corner as the angle was closed.

Old Trafford was on fire, and a Ronaldo charge forward resulted in a foul by Matteo Lovato, who was then booked by Szymon Marciniak. As United pushed forward, Pasalic and Marten de Roon were sent to the stands, with McTominay striking Musso's left post from a Greenwood ball. This was excellent as a retort, but with at least one more goal required, Solskjr brought on Pogba and Edinson Cavani in place of McTominay and Rashford.

Cavani was moved to the centre of the field, while Ronaldo was replaced by Pogba, who was given a free position. Before Solskjr inserted Sancho for Greenwood, De Gea had to save strong efforts from Duván Zapata and Ruslan Malinovskyi. The skipper then made a significant contribution, swinging at a lolloping Fernandes cross that had first grazed Cavani's head and scoring smartly.

It would have been better to watch Ronaldo do what he does best: score precisely when it matters, as this team's go-to man. Liverpool is the next team to play at this stadium on Sunday.

The smart money is on the visitors if United performs like this again. With Ronaldo in the lineup, however, Solskjr's team is never out of contention.