Manchester United were dealt a major blow to their UEFA Champions League hopes as they sit bottom of group A with only two matches to spare after losing 4-3 to Copenhagen.
Arsenal however took a major step towards qualifying for the last 16 as they cruised past Sevilla 2-0 at Emirates Stadium to move on to nine points in group A, needing just one more point to qualify for the knockout stages.
How Man Utd's match unfolded
Man Utd made a dream start in Copenhagen as Rasmus Hojlund helped the visitors take control inside the opening 28 minutes.
Against the club where it all started for him, Hojlund struck in the third minute following good build-up play from Marcus Rashford and Aaron Wan-Bissaka.
The latter slid the ball through to Scott McTominay who played it across for Hojlund to score into an empty net.
Man Utd's evening got even better when Hojlund doubled his tally.
He claimed his second, again an easy tap-in, after Alejandro Garnacho's initial effort was parried by Copenhagen goalkeeper Kamil Grabara.
Hojlund becomes the first Man Utd player to score five goals in his first four appearances in the Champions League.
However there would be a twist in the proceedings. Three minutes before half-time Rashford caught his opponent, leading to a red card following a VAR review.
Three minutes later, former Southampton player Mohamed Elyounoussi reduced the deficit as he swept in from inside the penalty box following Diogo Goncalves' cut-back.
And Copenhagen levelled the scoreline in the ninth minute of first-half stoppage time when Goncalves converted a spot-kick after Harry Maguire was penalised for a handball.
Despite being down to 10 men, Man Utd took control of the second-half and went back in front through Bruno Fernandes, who dispatched his penalty following a handball from Lukas Lerager.
But Diogo Dalot switched off seven minutes from time to allow Lerager to make amends as he made it 3-3.
And in the 87th minute Copenhagen went in front for the first time in the evening as Roony Bardghji, aged 17 years and 358 days, became the youngest player to score against Man Utd in the Champions League.
Man Utd now face a tall order in reaching the last 16 of the Champions League, and will be eliminated from the competition if they lose to Galatasaray in three weeks' time.
Group A standings
| Team | Matches played | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Bayern Munich | 4 | 12 |
| Copenhagen | 4 | 4 |
| Galatasaray | 4 | 4 |
| Man Utd | 4 | 3 |
See: Man Utd report and line-up
How Arsenal's match unfolded
Bukayo Saka was the star of the show for Arsenal as he scored one goal and made another in their success over Sevilla.
Saka created the opening goal as he played the final pass for Leandro Trossard, starting in place of Eddie Nketiah because of an ankle problem, and the Belgian had the simple task of tapping into an empty net.
It was the fifth time Trossard had been set up by Saka this season in all competitions, the most assists by one Premier League player for another in 2023/24.
The latter then gave Arsenal complete control in the contest after doubling their lead in the 64th minute.
Saka received a pass from Gabriel Martinelli, who was excellent all night, before moving into the penalty area, cutting the ball back onto his left foot and then unleashing a fine strike into the bottom-left corner.
The only downside to Arsenal's evening was the sight of Saka walking off with a suspected injury.
However Mikel Arteta said post-match that he hopes the injury won't be a serious one.
"It was just a kick and I was told by the physios he wasn't happy to continue. I want to assume he will be OK," said the Arsenal manager.
Arsenal fully deserved the victory against Sevilla, whose only shot came in the final minute of the match, as they move on to nine points and need only one more point to reach the knockout stages.
Group B standings
| Team | Matches played | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Arsenal | 4 | 9 |
| PSV | 4 | 5 |
| Lens | 4 | 5 |
| Sevilla | 4 | 2 |
