MEXICAN STRIKER JAVIER Hernandez came off the bench to snatch a late winner for Manchester United as they got their first win of this season’s Champions League in Valencia.
The Spanish hosts and current La Liga winners had been the better side for much of the game but Hernandez’s introduction was a turning point. First he hit the post before finding the target with a left foot shot low into the corner with five minutes remaining at the Mestalla.
Afterwards manager Alex Ferguson hailed Hernandez, nicknamed Chicharito (Spanish for little pea), for his finishing:
The way he took his chance, it was like shelling peas. It was so natural to him. He has work to do on his physique but you cannot take away from the fact that he is a fantastic finisher.
The win puts Manchester United joint top of Group C with Scottish Champions Rangers who were 1-0 winners over Turkish side Buraspor at Ibrox. Steven Naismith capped a fine individual display with the only goal of the game after 18 minutes.
It was Rangers’ first Champions League win in 14 attempts and manager Walter Smith hopes that it will boost confidence ahead of their double header against Valencia next month.
We’re happy we got our win and we’ve gained a bit of confidence; our team worked extremely hard. Naismith’s been playing exceptionally well this season and we’re all delighted for him.
Elsewhere for the British clubs, it was a great night for Tottenham Hotspur who earned their first ever Champions League win with a 4-1 thrashing of FC Twente although the scoreline hid what was a much closer game, the home side reliant on three penalties.
All the goals came in the second half as Rafael van der Vaart, who had missed a first half penalty, powered home the opener two minutes after the restart. A Roman Pavlyuchenko spot-kick added to Spurs’s lead before Van der Vaart was sent-off for a second booking.
Nacer Chadli’s poked shot gave Twente hope but a dubious handball and the resultant penalty allowed Pavlyuchenko to add a Spurs third and Gareth Bale’s late goal sealed a famous win for Harry Redknapp’s side.
Redknapp praised the victory and his team selection afterwards saying:
We picked an open team who went for it. We could have played with one up with Van der Vaart behind, but went for it and got four goals.It was a fantastic result. We won 4-1 so I picked the right team. It’s not a problem.
In the same group, holders Inter recorded an impressive 4-0 win over Werder Bremen. In Group D, Barcelona were held to a 1-1 draw by Rubin Kazan in Russia. FC Copenhagen that group after a 2-0 win at Panathinaikos.
Lyon moved clear at the top of Group B with a 3-1 win at Hapoel Tel Aviv. Finally, Schalke claimed their first home win of the season scoring twice in the last 17 minutes to beat Benfica 2-0.
