Manchester United forced to wait for knockout passage after Basel loss

An 89th-minute tap-in from Michael Lang continued a drab personal record for Jose Mourinho against FC Basel, and forced Manchester United to wait until the last matchday to confirm potential progression into the knockout rounds.

United played at a leisurely pace for much of the tie at St. Jakob-Park, and was eventually punished following an improved second-half performance from the home side.

A point in the final meeting with CSKA Moscow on Dec. 5 will still be enough for the Red Devils to secure top spot in Group A. Sounds simple enough, but many would have said the same about Wednesday’s trip to northwestern Switzerland.

United dominated the opening half, albeit in second gear. Basel was lacklustre despite needing a win to keep its knockout-round chances alive, and granted the visitor a series of opportunities. Marouane Fellaini should’ve got himself on the scoresheet, Jesse Lingard was hampered by his own heavy touches, and Marcos Rojo, who returned from a seven-month injury layoff, smashed the woodwork with a 35-yard wallop just before the break.

Basel reversed the trend in the second half, with Lang bouncing a header off the crossbar and several Basel players, including Serey Die and Mohamed Elyounoussi, causing the visitor problems. Eventually the United barricades were breached when Raoul Petretta’s low cross passed a dozy Daley Blind and allowed Lang to pocket an easy far-post finish.