Van Nistelrooy double lifts Man Utd to victory over Basel
Three goals in seven minutes midway through the second half enabled Manchester United to recover from conceding a goal after 31 seconds to beat Basel 3-1 in their opening Group D Champions League second phase match on Tuesday.
Three goals in seven minutes midway through the second half enabled Manchester United to recover from conceding a goal after 31 seconds to beat Basel 3-1 in their opening Group D Champions League second phase match on Tuesday.
The Swiss outsiders stunned their illustrious visitors when Argentine striker Christian Gimenez deflected a Scott Chipperfield shot into the net after Quinton Fortune had blocked a Julio Hernan Rossi header on the line.
Van Nistelrooy, who hit a hat-trick in the premier league on Saturday, equalised with a simple header in 61st minute and put injury-ravaged United ahead 90 seconds later with a curling shot from an impossible angle after skipping past two defenders to the byline.
Norwegian striker Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who set up the first United goal with a perfect cross, added the third in the 68th minute to leave Basel, who had been the better side for an hour, completely shell-shocked.