Neil Lennon's Omonia underdogs gave Manchester United an almighty scare before eventually succumbing to Europa League defeat.
The Cypriot side led Erik ten Hag 's superstars at half-time of their group stage in clash in Nicosia as a European shock for the ages looked very much on. United were badly out of sorts in a pedestrian first-half but eventually rallied to victory thanks to goals from substitutes Marcus Rashford, who hit a double, and Anthony Martial before Omonia pulled one back to make the Premier League giants sweat in the final minutes.
Led by former Celtic boss Lennon, Omonia had taken a surprise 34th minute lead having barely emerged from their own half in the opening half an hour. Full-back Tyrell Malacia wanted too much time on the ball in midfield and he was robbed with United having badly overcommitted. That allowed Bruno Felipe to charge forward and slip in Karim Ansarifard to smash high beyond David de Gea. The goal left United in a spin and Ten Hag, wearing a look of fury at the interval, hooked Malacia and Jadon Sancho in favour of Rashford and Luke Shaw.
And Rashford, recently named September's Premier League player of the month, made an instant impact. Casemiro's raking diagonal ball didn't get a first touch to match from the England striker, but Cristiano Ronaldo's dummy run allowed him to shift inside and curl a sumptuous finish into the far corner.
He was soon joined in attack by Martial as United turned the screw. And the pair swiftly combined to deliver it as Rashford's flick allowed the Frenchman to control and finish from a similar angle to the first, albeit into the opposite corner. It was ruthless stuff from United and in stark contrast to their first-half lethargy.
But they could, and probably should, have been pegged back when Bruno escaped in behind and attempted to lob the onrushing De Gea - but the striker badly under hit his finish straight into the Spaniard's arms.
Ronaldo, in search of his 700th career goal, somehow failed to hit that milestone as time ticked away, instead hitting the post from six yards after Diogo Dalot's cut-back. He would eventually turn provider to set up a third for the Red Devils.
The Portuguese dragged a shot across the face of the goal which was tapped in by Rashford at the back post. It was much needed breathing space for United but it was to last only a matter of moments as Omonia raced up the other end to hit a second via Nikolas Panayiotou's brilliant first time finish after a cross from the right.
But there was to be no fairytale comeback as United held on for a much-needed three points. The result keeps Ten Hag's men second behind Real Sociedad, who beat Sheriff in Spain this evening. Omonia remain at the bottom of the section with three defeats from three.
