Champions League: Deportivo thrown lifeline

Manchester United 1-1 Deportivo (Agg 3-1) H/T

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer lived up to his unwanted tag of supersub once again when he scored within two minutes of coming on for Manchester United against Deportivo La Coruna at Old Trafford.

Solskjaer, who replaced the injured David Beckham, met Juan Sebastian Veron’s free-kick after 23 minutes to net, appropriately enough, his 23rd goal of the season.

Laurent Blanc gave Depor some hope when he turned Fran’s pull-back into his own net a minute before half-time.

Djalminha was recalled in one of three changes by Depor and the Brazilian managed the first shot with a wayward effort which failed to trouble Fabien Barthez.

Right from the off the game was open and Depor goalkeeper Francisco Molina nearly gifted United an early goal.

He failed to hold van Nistelrooy’s relatively-tame shot and fortunately for the Spanish Lionel Scaloni was first to the loose ball to knock it behind for a corner.

Molina atoned for his gaffe when he made a fingertip save to touch Fortune’s left-foot shot around the post.

That stop, though, was surpassed by Barthez minutes later when he robbed Diego Tristan, who had been played through by Juan Carlos Valeron, as he tried to round the Frenchman.

Then at the other end, van Nistelrooy miskicked when through on the left and Molina gathered the loose ball.

David Beckham, who had shrugged off an ankle injury from the first game to play, was sent flying again when Pedro Duscher caught him with a two-footed tackle.

Referee Markus Merk booked Scaloni for dissent and Juan Sebastian Veron’s 25-yard effort from the resultant free-kick was delfected wide.

Beckham could not continue and he was replaced by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, the second time the England captain had been forced off against Depor in a week after Tristan’s injury-time tackle in the Riazor last week.

The Norwegian made an immediate impact by opening the scoring in the 23rd minute.

Veron sent in an inswinging free-kick from the left and Solskjaer cushioned a volley past the static Molina to increase United’s aggregate lead to 3-0.

If Depor had had a mountain to climb before, they now had to scale Mount Everest, K2 and any other peak in the Himalayas you could care to mention - needing to score three times to win.

But it was United who came closest to scoring again and Giggs jinked his way into the Depor box only to see his shot deflected wide for a corner.

The goal deflated Depor and they knew they had needed to score first if they were going to have any chance of accomplishing their mission impossible.

United’s injury troubles continued and on 37 minutes Wes Brown came on for the crocked Ronny Johnsen.

Depor were thrown a lifeline a minute before the interval when Laurent Blanc knocked Fran’s pull-back into his own net.