Manchester United 1- 0 Vålerenga: United take all three points on their Champions League debut | OneFootball

The second day of the Champions League saw debutants Manchester United host Norwegian team Vålerenga.

This was a historic match for Marc Skinner’s side, as they played their first-ever official Champions League game after qualifying for the competition for the first time in their history, having beaten another Norwegian team, Brann, 4-1 on aggregate in the qualifying stage.

Vålerenga are approaching the end of their season with only a few games remaining, currently sitting second in the league, just four points behind Brann

Despite being the underdogs of the competition, United took all three points after going 1-0 up in the first half.

As it happened

The hosts opened play with an attack towards goal almost immediately after kick- off, showing their technical ability in front of goal. They continued to threaten in the opening five minutes, with much of the game being played in their attacking third.

Despite several attempts to push up the field, Vålerenga lacked composure and were overpowered by the individual strengths of Marc Skinner’s side.

A near attempt from Melvine Malard was made when Vålerenga’s captain and goalkeeper Tove Enblom was caught off her line. Fortunately, she was rescued by her defence as Michaela Kovacs used her body to block the ball from entering the back of the net.

Shortly after, the first decisive moment of the match occurred when The Red Devils were awarded a questionable penalty in the 28th minute after a handball from Arna Eiríksdóttir.

Skipper Maya Le Tissier stepped up to convert the penalty, scoring Manchester United’s first ever Champions League goal, helping the hosts to a lead with 15 minutes of the first half remaining.

Vålerenga needed to take action going into the second half 1-0 down if they were to have any chance of earning a point, but they failed to gain momentum. United dominated the game, nearly doubling their lead a minute after the restart.

Despite their superiority, Skinner’s side started to become predictable with their play and the Norwegian side worked hard to get bodies in the box to defend United’s attempts at goal.

Norwegian international Elisabeth Terland and Manchester United’s leading goalscorer this season, Melvine Malard, each had a few shots on target, but they lacked conviction.

It was clear that United concentrated on maintaining their lead and keeping possession of the ball, which was an easy task to do with players such as Jessica Park and Hinata Miyazawa being able to travel and intercept so brilliantly.

The final 10 minutes of the game offered some optimism for Vålerenga after a few substitutions injected a new energy in the team and play was in their attacking end of the pitch for the first time in the second half. Several attempts towards goal were made, but for the Norwegian side it was too little too late.

The game ended 1-0 as Manchester United claimed their first ever Champions League win and are now the only English team to claim all three points after Round 1 of the UEFA Women’s Champions League, sitting 7th in the table – three above WSL rivals Chelsea and five above last season’s champions, Arsenal.

The lineups

MUN: Tullis-Joyce; Sandberg, Janssen, Le Tissier, Riviere; Toone, Miyazawa, Zigiotti Olme; Malard, Toone, Park; Terland

VAL: Enblom; Eiríksdóttir, Kovacs, Hørte; Heiðarsdóttir, Inauen, Vickius, Tennebø; Tvedten, Sævik, Hegg