Rasmus Hojlund scores twice for Manchester United but Galatasaray turn the Champions League game around thanks to Casemiro's red card and Mauro Icardi's late winner; Erik ten Hag's team without a point after two matches.
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Manchester United crashed to a 3-2 defeat to Galatasaray in the Champions League at Old Trafford as their alarming form under Erik ten Hag continued.
Rasmus Hojlund had twice given United the lead but the Turkish team pegged them back each time before Andre Onana's error led to Casemiro being red carded in his attempt to salvage the situation. Mauro Icardi missed the penalty but made amends with the winner.
Questions will be asked of Onana, uncertain throughout, but much of the defence were culpable for the capitulation. Having lost to Bayern Munich in their opening Champions League game, there is much work to do to progress beyond the group stage now.
Ten Hag's concerns are more immediate given that United have now lost six of their 10 matches this season.
Player ratings
Man United: Onana (3), Dalot (5), Varane (5), Lindelof (4), Amrabat (4), Casemiro (4), Mount (6), Hannibal (5), Fernandes (6), Rashford (4), Hojlund (8).
Subs: Eriksen (7), Garnacho (6), Antony (n/a), Martial (n/a).
Galatasaray: Muslera (6), Boey (7), Sanchez (5), Abdulkerim (6), Angelino (6), Torreira (6), Ayhan (6), Tete (7), Akturkoglu (7), Zaha (7), Icardi (7).
Subs: Yilmaz (7), Oliveira (6), Mertens (6), Ndombele (n/a), Nelsson (n/a).
* Player of the match: Rasmus Hojlund
Man Utd threw away the game:
Galatasaray's first win on English soil in 11 attempts had appeared unlikely early on with Hojlund to the fore. His work set up Bruno Fernandes for a chance inside two minutes and the Dane was rewarded for his positivity with the opening goal of the game soon after.
Marcus Rashford found space out wide and his cross was met by the head of Hojlund from point-blank range. The 20-year-old striker is yet to score in the Premier League but after finding the net twice here he has three in just two Champions League appearances.
Team news
Manchester United made one change from the side that started Saturday's 1-0 Premier League loss to Crystal Palace. Hannibal Mejbri replaced Facundo Pellistri in the starting line-up.
With Hojlund's hold-up play outstanding too, there were encouraging signs for United. But they were undone by the equaliser, a desperately poor goal to concede defensively.
A long ball was allowed to bounce and Zaha held off the challenge of Diogo Dalot before squeezing his shot over Onana. Both defender and goalkeeper might feel they could have done more to prevent it. The result was that United lost fluency and momentum.
There were still opportunities. Mason Mount saw two chances deflected wide, one of them off his own team-mate Hannibal Mejbri. But that was nothing compared to the chance Rashford spurned early in the second half when he failed to find Bruno Fernandes.
Ten Hag appeared crestfallen on the bench, Fernandes infuriated by his team-mate's decision to delay the centre after being put through by half-time substitute Christian Eriksen. The breakthrough then appeared to come on the hour but Hojlund was ruled offside.
There was no denying the young forward, however. With the home crowd up, Davinson Sanchez's slip was ruthlessly punished as Hojlund ran from the halfway line, holding off his marker and then showing extraordinary composure to dink the ball into the net.
That should have broken Galatasaray but a swift counter-attack altered the mood, Amrabat and Victor Lindelof well beaten in the build-up before Kerem Akturkoglu's crisp finish but worse was to come. A loose pass from Onana sparked United's collapse.
Clinton Morrison says it's worrying times for Manchester United with Rasmus Hojlund being the only positive in their Champions League defeat to Galatasaray.
Casemiro attempted to rectify the error but his rash challenge on Baris Yilmaz resulted in a penalty and a red card for the Brazilian. Icardi appeared to let United off the hook by firing wide from the spot but it was yet another defensive calamity that cost them.
Sanchez's header forwards found Icardi free in the middle with Amrabat playing him onside from left-back and Raphael Varane nowhere to be seen. This time, Icardi finished with aplomb to spark wild scenes in the away end - and misery among United supporters.
Clinton Morrison says it's worrying times for Manchester United with Rasmus Hojlund being the only positive in their Champions League defeat to Galatasaray.
"It's a bad night and there has to be pressure on Ten Hag now.
"I don't think they played badly. The game could have been over if they had taken their chances.
"There is no organisation, and they are getting opened up. Man Utd were far too open at the back.
"The one positive I will take from tonight is Hojlund, he was outstanding and looks a real player. He held the ball up ever so well and led the line and scored two really goals.
"Worrying times for Manchester United."
Man Utd's misery in numbers:
Manchester United have opened a Champions League campaign with consecutive defeats for the first time.
Manchester United have lost six of their 10 matches in all competitions this season. They have also conceded 18 goals in 10 matches in all competitions. That is their most at this stage since 1966.
This was Galatasaray's first away win in the competition since a 3-2 victory against Schalke in the last 16 in March 2013, and the first time they had scored in a Champions League away match since November 2015 against Benfica, going seven matches in the competition on the road without scoring before tonight.
Defensive woes continue despite Hojlund's goals
This is a painful defeat for Erik ten Hag. His Manchester United team flickered into life in moments, hinting at potential, but familiar issues brought them tumbling back down.
As against Bayern Munich, United twice conceded soon after scoring. In Germany, Bayern struck four minutes and two minutes after United scored. At Old Trafford, Galatasaray responded six minutes and four minutes after United twice went ahead.
United totally imploded after Rasmus Hojlund scored his second goal. Sofyan Amrabat showed why he is only a makeshift left-back to allow the equaliser and Andre Onana compounded his mistake with his hands in Munich by making a bigger error with his feet.
Casemiro had been balancing his midfield duties nicely after picking up a caution in the first half for a high boot, but his tendency to slide in saw him walking and Galatasaray winning a penalty. It was the third red card of his United career and will be his fourth suspension.
Ten Hag cannot account for such individual lapses, but this is now a sixth defeat in 10 games and with United performing poorly for the majority, focus will fall on the manager.
One thing United didn’t need in their current run of games is multiple defensive errors on a Champions League night at Old Trafford. For the first parts of the game, United’s defending didn’t look as bad as what transpired come the final whistle.
A mistake from Diogo Dalot in the first half allowed Zaha to connect with a long ball to bring Galatasaray back into the game just six minutes after Hojlund’s opener. Then, after United took the lead in the second half, Andre Onana parried a cross from the right side towards the penalty spot and Akturkoglu came close to scoring the equaliser.
The Turkish midfielder didn’t have to wait long though, as one minute later a defensive lapse from United’s back line allowed Baris Yilmaz to find him inside United’s penalty area and Akturkoglu didn’t miss the target this time, scoring Galatasaray’s second on the night.
Onana’s errors didn’t stop there. A couple of minutes after Galatasaray’s equaliser, his weak pass in the build-up was intercepted by Dries Mertens, forcing Casemiro into committing a foul in the penalty area, which saw him sent off for a second yellow card.
The comical scenes continued with United conceding a third after Amrabat’s forward pass was intercepted and Icardi struck on the counter.
Quite simply, United shot themselves in the foot multiple times as they’ve done on numerous occasions this season.
United’s Champions League hopes hang in the balance
Manchester United fans of a certain age will remember a chaotic 3-3 draw at home to Galatasaray that effectively cost them a place in the group stage in their first Champions League campaign in 1993, eliminated on away goals after a goalless (and famously fractious) second leg in Istanbul.
There was a similar sense of chaos at Old Trafford tonight and once again, after Galatasaray’s first away win in the Champions League for 10 years, United’s hopes are left hanging in the balance.
For all the promise in some of their attacking play, a loss of control in the second half and some shambolic defending condemned them to a second straight defeat in this competition, leaving them bottom of Group A – six points behind Bayern Munich and four points adrift of Galatasaray.
It leaves United with very little margin for error in a campaign that resumes at home to Copenhagen on October 24 and then away to the Danish club on November 8. Bayern are already well on course for the knockout stage and Galatasaray, so impressive in the final half-hour here, look capable of building on their strong start.
United have it all to do.
Galatasaray’s fans certainly made their presence felt. It was not quite the “welcome to hell” from the 1993 meeting in Istanbul, but they carried themselves through Manchester city centre to Old Trafford with noise and edge, setting off a flare on the A56 outside the stadium.
Inside the ground, they sang throughout, led by two men at the front stood facing them, balanced on the bars for the rail seating. They bounced as one and went wild when Zaha scored. They even created one of the more unusual sounds heard in that away section, with a duck whistle piercing the air occasionally.
Their boisterousness seemed to inspire United fans, who created a din in the second half as the game ebbed and flowed. The away fans only went quiet when Icardi screwed his penalty wide.
They went potty when Icardi atoned soon after and trouble even spilled out into the posh seats. A group of Galatasaray fans in the directors’ box celebrated jubilantly, prompting some in the United section in front to turn around and express their disgust in somewhat explicit terms.
After the game, it was clear just how many Galatasaray fans had found their way into Old Trafford. Thousands from all over the ground stayed behind to celebrate long after the final whistle.
Hojlund shows what the future could be like
It is rather early in Hojlund’s Manchester United career to be talking about a trademark goal, but already we are starting to see a trademark manoeuvre: a searing, direct, aggressive, perfectly timed charge, streaking through towards the penalty area at full pelt.
When Casemiro played a pass over the top for Marcus Rashford in the 17th minute, Hojlund knew initially to stay almost in line with the ball, just hanging back enough to avoid going too soon. The sprint started around the 30-yard mark, ready to attack the ball if and when it came. Rashford’s delivery was perfect and so was Hojlund’s anticipation and determination to make it count.
His second goal was similar. From the moment Davinson Sanchez slipped on the halfway line, there was only one outcome on the cards. The way Hojlund took it, deftly flicking the ball over Fernando Muslera, contrasted starkly with Rashford’s lack of composure when faced with a similar opening 15 minutes earlier.
There is a rawness about Hojlund and these were still only his second and third goals in seven appearances for his new club and he is yet to score in four appearances (three starts) in the Premier League, but it is an exciting rawness. Those raw materials — speed, power, aggression, goalscoring instinct — add up to something exciting if United can play to his strengths.
Old Trafford let out a collective groan when Rashford elected to pass to Bruno Fernandes rather than shoot for goal when clean through. It played into a theory that the debate around Rashford’s form has played on his mind and left his decision-making poorer.
His cross for Hojlund was spot on and he worked hard to close Galatasaray down off the ball, but that moment in the second half, when he telegraphed his desire to be the provider again, made up Erik ten Hag’s mind. The square ball to Fernandes was on but Rashford seriously underhit it and a glorious chance was gone.
Ten Hag decided to swap Rashford for Alejandro Garnacho with more than 20 minutes left on the clock and United needing a goal. The Dutchman also took Rashford off before the end against Crystal Palace with his side behind on Saturday, which is quite a statement about the team’s top scorer last season.
Zaha: Goal celebration wasn't a message to United
Wilfried Zaha spoke to Turkish outlet Exxen after scoring against his former club: "People think my goal celebration is a message, but it's something about passion. It was my first match in the Champions League, it was an explosion of emotions at that moment.
"What is important for me is to raise Galatasaray's name to the place it deserves — that is at the top. I believe we can achieve this when the team is as a whole, as it was tonight."
Ten Hag: We cannot allow those mental errors
Erik ten Hag spoke to TNT Sports after the loss: "The mental errors we make, you cannot allow them at this level. You get punished. This is difficult to control. We are all in this together. We were twice up and in control of the game. We expect more together."
On Rasmus Hojlund's two goals: "Rasmus scored two great goals. We're happy with that but of course but we didn't win the game. He can be really happy with his goals."
On Marcus Rashford trying to set up Bruno Fernandes early in the second half instead of shooting: "That's up to Marcus. In such a moment he has to make a decision."
Galatasaray manager: 'A win that will be remembered for many years'
Galatasaray manager Okan Buruk spoke to Turkish outlet Exxen after the win: "It was a very good match. Our goal is to get out of the group. We got an important victory here, a 3-2 win that will be remembered for many years.
"After scoring the third goal, our opponent took risks. This gave us opportunities to score a fourth, but we could not take advantage of them."
Casemiro seeing red:
Casemiro has now been sent off three times in just 61 matches for Manchester United.
Prior to joining the club in the summer of 2022, he had received just two red cards in 323 matches for Real Madrid.
Icardi on redemption after missing penalty
Mauro Icardi spoke to the media after scoring the winning goal: "I was angry with myself for missing the penalty, but I'm very happy that we won. It's the first goal I scored with Galatasaray in the Champions League groups... I am very happy."
Eriksen: 'Very quiet in the dressing room'
Christian Eriksen spoke to TNT Sports after the defeat: "It's a big disappointment. It was very quiet in the dressing room. I think we had some good spells in the game.
"I don't think it's about confidence. It's awareness and sharpness and wrong decisions at wrong times. A lot (needs to be done). It's the details. If we don't make mistakes, we don't concede like we do.
"Luckily it's only the start of the competition and we know there are a lot of games to play."
Zaha relishes first career European start
Nice to hear Wilfried Zaha talking so enthusiastically about the Champions League experience, which has been a long time coming for him. “There’s nothing like it,” he said in a post-match interview on TNT Sport. “It’s a chance to showcase my talent against the best. I feel like that is where it’s decided whether I’m good or not.”
Leaving aside the awkward question about whether United are among “the best” right now, Zaha has a point. In 13 seasons at Crystal Palace (plus one unhappy, unfulfilled year at United a decade ago), he never played in European competition.
He was quiet for long periods tonight at Old Trafford — not quite the relentless dribbling threat of his best days at Palace — but it’s fair to say he enjoyed that goal.
Scholes worried about Varane
Interesting quotes from Paul Scholes on TNT Sports just now. When asked whether he thought Erik ten Hag should be starting to come under pressure, he suggested not — and shifted the conversation onto one player in particular.
“I worry about Varane a bit,” the former United and England midfielder said. “He’s been one of the very best defenders around, just like Rio (Ferdinand) was — in that same ilk. I just think his legs are looking a little bit sluggish. He can’t keep fit. I would be worried about him.”
United's swiss cheese defence
Manchester United have conceded 18 goals in 10 matches across all competitions this season. That total ranks as their most after 10 games of a campaign since 1966-67!
Sheffield United (19) are the only Premier League side who have conceded more than them in all competitions this season.
Galatasaray dominated the closing stages
For all the justifiable criticism of the way Manchester United capitulated, Galatasaray deserve a great deal of praise for their fightback. The way they responded to falling 2-1 down was extraordinary.
It was almost one-way traffic after that, with Baris Yilmaz coming on at right-wing to expose Sofyan Amrabat’s vulnerability at left-back. They pushed, they pressed and they forced United into one mistake after another. It is no exaggeration to say they could feasibly have scored another two goals in those final 20 minutes, which also featured a Mauro Icardi penalty miss. From the moment they fell 2-1 down, they had nine goal attempts to United’s three.
Experienced players lacked composure
This match reminded me of Manchester United’s Europa League quarter-final first leg at home to Sevilla in April: impressive going forward for much of the game, seemingly in control, but then a dreadful loss of concentration in the closing stages to contribute to their own downfall.
They had enough chances to in the first hour, but they lost their way completely. Andre Onana seemed to spread anxiety rather than the composure he was meant to bring, but he was far from the only one. Raphael Varane, Victor Lindelof, Casemiro, Christian Eriksen, Bruno Fernandes: you would never have imagined this was a team with such an experienced spine. How could they lose control like that?
Was it an issue of focus? Fitness? Tactics? All of the above? Erik ten Hag needs to find answers fast because, despite the encouragement offered by Rasmus Hojlund tonight, this team looks so unconvincing right now.
Ten Hag will find this hard to take
A painful defeat for Erik ten Hag. His side showed glimpses of potential but were undone by familiar issues. They totally imploded after Rasmus Hojlund’s second goal, a collective loss of focus. Six defeats from 10 games, a huge task to remedy.
After the game, it was clear just how many Galatasaray fans had found their way into Old Trafford. Thousands from all over the ground stayed behind to celebrate long after the final whistle.
From bad to worse
Manchester United’s hellish start to the season continues, but credit Galatasaray for their part in this result. They gifted United some dangerous space and chances, but held steady and were relentless on the break. Kerem Aktürkoglu was particularly lively around the box, and was justly rewarded with the equaliser.
Before the game, many viewed this as a needed chance for United to regain some stability. Now, with Onana making more costly gaffes and Casemiro facing a suspension, everything is in further disarray.
European woes Fom United:
Manchester United have now lost three European matches in a row for the first time since 2013.
United have also now lost seven of their past 14 Champions League matches at Old Trafford, more defeats than they suffered across their previous 80 matches there in the competition.
Hojlund goal disallowed
Hojlund is celebrating a second goal but the flag has gone up for offside!
It was a lovely team move and a powerful finish that slammed the ball past Muslera into the back of the net, but Hojlund was indeed off when the final pass was played.
Torreira ailing
57' Manchester United 1-1 Galatasaray
Torreira is down in pain and not for the first time tonight, prompting jeers from the home supporters.
The broadcast is showing replays of Rashford's wasted opportunity and each viewing makes it look worse and worse.
What a wasted chance for United!
Zaha goes down in the United box at one end. He appeals for a penalty but the referee isn't having it. United quickly break the other way and release Rashford into acres of space.
He has Fernandes in support and has the opportunity to put a tap-in goal on a plate for him, but gets his pass all wrong, allowing the defence to scramble the ball away to safety.
United have a long way to go
On the Paramount+ broadcast in the U.S., Peter Schmeichel says the energy in the stadium feels “better today” and that this game could be a vital chance to rebuild momentum. The feed immediately cuts to a graphic showing that they lead Europe in net spend ($1.4B) over the last decade, which causes the legendary goalkeeper to stop mid-sentence as he processes that fact for the umpteenth time.
Ten Hag: 'Old Trafford can play a part in raising our standards'
In today's match programme, Erik Ten Hag calls on the home supporters in attendance today to help his side's performance: "I think Old Trafford can play a part in raising our standards. In the last year we have had some unforgettable occasions together when we have generated great atmospheres. We know from experience that the players can be inspired by these occasions and show their capabilities.
"We worked hard last season to get ourselves into this competition and we must make the most of this opportunity now we are here. These are occasions to be enjoyed and savoured, so we must think positively, play proactively and demonstrate the quality we know is in our squad."
Where has Manchester United’s home form gone?
Manchester United's third-place finish last season was heavily based on their brilliant home form. They only lost one league game at Old Trafford — Ten Hag’s first in charge, against Brighton on the opening weekend — and conceded just 10 goals in 19 games. They were much patchier on the road: they lost as many games as they won (eight), suffered that 7-0 humiliation to Liverpool in March and didn’t beat anyone who finished higher than 10th.
This season, they have already lost twice at home in four Premier League games, conceding six goals. They were fortunate to beat Wolves in their first fixture and the win against Nottingham Forest contained elements of luck too, as well as some horrendous defending to leave United 2-0 down after four minutes. Then came the demolition by Brighton, and this past weekend's defeat by Crystal Palace.
The last time they lost two consecutive home league games was the final throes of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s tenure in 2021. With nine points and a goal difference of -4, this is United’s worst start to a season after seven games since 1989-90.
Ten Hag spoke afterwards about the need to “show in our body language that Old Trafford is a fortress and you can’t get anything here”. They will need to show in more than just body language, because if United’s home form completely disappears, this season will continue to unravel extremely quickly.
What's next?
Manchester United's next assignment is a Premier League clash with Brentford at Old Trafford on Saturday October 7 (kick-off 3pm).
Up next for Galatasaray is a Super Lig meeting with Antalyaspor, also taking place on Saturday (kick-off 5pm BST).
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