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Manchester United battled back after conceding a fourth-minute goal to grind out a hard-fought 2-1 victory over VfL Wolfsburg at Old Trafford on Wednesday, the English side's first Champions League win of the season.
There was huge pressure on United after they lost to PSV Eindhoven in their opening Group B match two weeks ago and their night got off to the worst start when Daniel Caligiuri opened the scoring for the well-drilled visitors after some poor defending.
United, who came from behind to beat Wolfsburg 2-1 exactly six years ago to the day, followed the same script with Juan Mata equalising with a 34th-minute penalty, while defender Chris Smalling proved to be the unlikely match-winner when he slid in to score his first goal of the season after 53 minutes.
With CSKA Moscow beating PSV Eindhoven 3-2 in Russia, the four teams are all level after two matches. CSKA Moscow host United and Wolfsburg are at home to PSV in Matchday Three on Oct.21.
United started the match buoyed by going top of the Premier League at the weekend, but they were reeling after Wolfsburg struck to take the lead after a six-pass move.
United were guilty of woeful defending as Antonio Valencia played Caligiuri onside and he picked his spot to beat David De Gea.
Wayne Rooney should have equalised for United after 26 minutes after fine work down the right from Anthony Martial, but the United skipper, who had a poor game in attack, blasted the ball high and wide when it looked easier to find the net.
They drew level when Mata sent goalkeeper Diego Benaglio the wrong way with his penalty after Hungarian referee Viktor Kassai ruled scorer Caligiuri handled in the box.
Mata was instrumental in setting up United's second goal as well, providing the final pass with a creative, backheeled flick that allowed Smalling to slide home his first goal of the season after 53 minutes.
"It was very difficult because they scored so early," United manager Louis van Gaal told BT Sport.
"Then we did very well. We created a lot of chances. But we don't finish it and it was a lucky penalty, I think. Then we score and after that it was suffering. We have to keep the ball better in the second half.
"We were suffering. A lot of players are very tired because of the accumulation of matches, but still, we did not give much away," he added.
Wolfsburg coach Dieter Hecking said: "We had a good start to the game. Midway through the first half we lost a bit of control and they had the chances to level."
The Premier League leaders now find themselves in a four-way tie on three points in Group B after CSKA Moscow defeated PSV Eindhoven 3-2 in Russia in the night's other game.
CSKA withstand second-half fightback to beat PSV 3-2
CSKA Moscow withstood a second-half fightback from PSV Eindhoven to secure their first win in this season's Champions League group stage with a 3-2 victory on Wednesday.
The hosts were cruising after a dominant first-half display and goals from Ahmed Musa and a double from Seydou Doumbia put them 3-0 up at halftime in the Group B encounter.
Yet Maxime Lestienne scored twice within eight minutes after the break as the visitors launched a fine comeback that almost allowed them to snatch a point, before they were halted in their tracks by an 80th-minute red card for Santiago Arias.
All four teams in the group are on three points after their opening two games after Manchester United beat VfL Wolfsburg 2-1 in the other match.
The Russian side took the lead after seven minutes when the impressive Musa was on hand to stab the ball into the net from close range after PSV failed to clear Zoran Tosic's corner.
Leonid Slutskiy's team doubled their advantage on 21 minutes following a fine team move, involving great interplay between Mario Fernandes and Tosic, which released the Brazilian down the right flank.
His inch-perfect cross picked out Doumbia, who headed past PSV keeper Jeroen Zoet.
Doumbia made it 3-0 from the spot after Tosic was fouled, but the Ivorian wasted a chance for a hat-trick when he blasted a second penalty over the bar a minute before halftime, following a foul on Musa.
PSV were rejuvenated in the second half and took the game to CSKA.
Lestienne was instrumental as he turned in Adam Maher's cross from close range to give the visitors hope.
Lestienne, who had never previously scored in the Champions League, grabbed his second with a thunderbolt shot, which he rifled past CSKA keeper Igor Akinfeev on 68 minutes, but the visitors' comeback hopes were dampened by Arias's late dismissal.
Aguero's last gasp penalty earns win for City at Gladbach
Sergio Aguero scored a last minute penalty to give Manchester City a 2-1 comeback win at Borussia Moenchengladbach in the Champions League on Wednesday and their first three points in Group D.
Gladbach, having waited 37 years for their first home game in Europe's premier club competition, stunned their big-name opponents with a 54th minute goal by Lars Stindl.
City, who have goalkeeper Joe Hart to thank for keeping them in the game with half a dozen superb saves, drew level with Nicolas Otamendi's deflected effort in the 65th before launching a late rally in search of a winner and with Argentine striker Aguero scoring from the spot.
The result sees City move up to three points with Gladbach still to earn any in Group D.
PSG extend unbeaten run with classy Shakhtar win
Defender Dario Srna scored a late own goal from a shot by Zlatan Ibrahimovic as Paris Saint-Germain wrapped up a 3-0 win at Shakhtar Donetsk in the Champions League on Wednesday.
Serge Aurier struck an early goal in his first Champions League appearance before David Luiz added the second from a corner as PSG stayed level with Real Madrid at the top of Group A on a maximum six points.
The Parisians extended their unbeaten run to 18 games in all competitions since April’s loss to Barcelona in last season's quarter-finals.
Ivorian international Aurier, who stepped in to replace Gregory van der Wiel at right back, pounced on an exquisitely curled left cross from Maxwell at the far post to head in a quick opener seven minutes from the start.
Classy PSG stunned the hapless home side in the 23rd minute when Angel Di Maria delivered a corner into the area and David Luiz beat his marker to send a clumsy volley into the top corner with his knee.
Di Maria himself had a clear opportunity five minutes later when he chipped the ball over the keeper but wide of the far post.
For Shakhtar, Alex Teixeira set up a succession ofpromising chances three minutes before the interval but PSG defenders managed to block all the shots with defender Olexandr Kucher blazing the last one over the crossbar.
Ten minutes after the restart defender Yaroslav Rakytskiy chested away for a corner a thundering strike from Marco Verratti before the Italian set up Di Maria for another one-one-one with keeper Andriy Paytov which he missed.
Shakhtar's fans cheered up when Brazilian talent Alex Teixeira came close to pulling a goal back twice in the 78th minute by was denied by keeper Kevin Trapp and then the crossbar.
Ibrahimovic was looking to equal Pauleta's PSG record of 109 goals in all competitions when Srna tried to block his late effort only to turn the ball in his own net at the near post.
Shakhtar suffered another bitter blow to their hopes of qualifying for the knockout phase and are bottom of the group having conceded more goals than third-placed Malmo in their two defeats.
Benfica battle back to claim 2-1 win at Atletico
Benfica seized control of Champions League Group C when they fought back from a goal down to secure an impressive 2-1 win at 2014 runners-up Atletico Madrid on Wednesday.
Angel Correa fired Atletico ahead in the 23rd minute at the Calderon when Antoine Griezmann cushioned a delightful pass into his path and he cracked the ball past Julio Cesar from close range.
Nicolas Gaitan levelled for the visitors in the 36th minute, smashing a first-time shot through a crowd of players, and teenager Goncalo Guedes made it 2-1 six minutes into the second half when he converted a Gaitan cross at the far post.
They were the first goals Atletico had conceded at the Calderon in Europe’s elite club competition in more than 700 minutes and prevented them from setting a Champions League record of eight consecutive home clean sheets.
Diego Simeone's side have won 21 of their last 25 European matches at home and it was their first defeat since a 2-0 reverse to Rubin Kazan in the Europa League last 32 in 2013.
With two matches played, Benfica top the section with a maximum six points, with Atletico in second place on three. Astana and Galatasaray each have one point after they drew 2-2 in Kazakhstan earlier on Wednesday.
The game in the Spanish capital, the first competitive meeting between the sides, was marred by Benfica fans throwing flares towards the Atletico supporters after Gaitan’s equaliser.
