Manchester United vs AS Roma: Cunha rescues Carrick

Booed off at half-time, two goals down and with Michael Carrick's job openly in question, Manchester United were staring at another humiliation on Tuesday night. Instead, Matheus Cunha scored twice in three minutes to complete a 3-2 Champions League comeback against AS Roma. He was then sent off, and his manager had to drag him away from the celebrations.

The victory ended a run of nine matches without a win in all competitions. It came after three straight defeats and a weekend of speculation that Carrick had two games to save his job. He has now won one of them, in about the most chaotic way possible.

Roma punish a fragile United inside 17 minutes

Matías Soulé's opener came in the 11th minute. Kobbie Mainoo was caught in possession, Rodrigo Mora lofted a diagonal ball over Ayden Heaven into the vacated space on the right, and Soulé swept a low finish past Senne Lammens into the bottom near corner. It was his fourth goal of the season in 14 appearances.

Six minutes later it was 0-2. Soulé's follow-up shot struck Heaven's outstretched arm, and Donyell Malen sent Lammens the wrong way from the spot. Malen now has 12 goals in 13 appearances this season and has scored in five of Roma's last six matches.

United had never fallen two goals behind so quickly in a European match at Old Trafford. The ground was hostile before a ball was kicked. Hundreds of green and gold balloons drifted down from the Stretford End, and tennis balls were hurled onto the pitch in protest against the Glazer family and Sir Jim Ratcliffe. Marbles followed, along with anti-Glazer chants, and the home side walked off at the interval to boos.

Fernandes converts at the second attempt as the mood shifts

The way back began with a decision Roma will be talking about for days. Referee Jesus Gil Manzano pointed to the spot in the 58th minute for Gianluca Mancini's push on Cunha, a call widely judged to be soft. Devis Vásquez parried Bruno Fernandes' penalty, but the referee ordered it retaken because Bryan Cristante had encroached.

Fernandes did not miss twice. He lashed the second attempt into the bottom corner for his fifth goal of the season in 13 appearances. It was a cruel turn for Vásquez on a night he was never meant to play. The third-choice goalkeeper made his official debut for Roma and in the Champions League because Mile Svilar was already injured and Pierluigi Gollini suffered a back problem in training only hours before kick-off.

From there the traffic ran one way. United finished with 15 shots to Roma's seven and six on target to four. Roma have now scored in seven straight matches, with 23 goals in that spell, yet they barely threatened after the break. Possession stayed close at 52% to 48%, but United controlled the territory.

Cunha strikes twice in three minutes, then sees red

Cunha's 83rd-minute equaliser came from a gift. Fernandes sent a looping delivery into the box, Leonardo Balerdi completely misjudged it with an air-kick, and Cunha steered a first-time volley home from close range.

Three minutes later the turnaround was complete. Substitute Shea Lacey threaded a pass into the area, and Cunha drove it from an acute angle in off the inside of the near post. He ripped off his shirt and leapt into the front rows of the stand, which earned him a yellow card. The crowd that had booed the team at half-time was now chanting Carrick's name.

The celebration proved costly. In stoppage time, a late sliding foul on Balerdi brought Cunha a second yellow. He watched the final moments from an advertising board and tried to join the celebrations on the pitch at the whistle, but Carrick intercepted him and hurried him down the tunnel. Cunha looked visibly upset. He now has four goals in 14 appearances this season, and none have mattered more than these two.

Roma's complaints went beyond the penalty. Italian observers also heavily disputed Gil Manzano's decision not to show Harry Maguire a second yellow card for a late challenge on Castro.

Carrick buys time as Roma relive an Old Trafford collapse

The English press saw a dramatic but temporary lifeline rather than a turning point. Within ten days United had been taken apart by Como in Europe, beaten 3-0 at home by Bournemouth and lost again at Chelsea, and the problems behind those results have not gone away. Commentators pointed to systemic rot, chaotic tactics and defensive vulnerability, and said Carrick's long-term future remains precarious heading into the November international break.

In the league phase, United now sit 17th on six points, with Roma 19th on four. Roma's five-match unbeaten run is over. Corriere dello Sport condemned their psychological and tactical blackout after the break, described the night as a plunge "from paradise into hell", and lamented an Old Trafford curse after a near-identical collapse against Real Madrid.

So what has changed for United? The winless run is over, and for one night the stands turned from protest to celebration. What has not changed is the question of how a side conceded twice inside 17 minutes at home. Carrick has bought time, not certainty, and the next bad result will bring the same scrutiny straight back.