Man Utd Stun Roma With Epic Comeback To Equal Real Madrid's Champions League Legacy

Whatever criticisms you may have of Manchester United, the club remains a true giant of the Champions League.

From being the first English club to participate—and succeed—in the original European Cup, to claiming the Champions League trophy twice more in the modern era and lifting it more recently than AC Milan, Juventus and Ajax, the Red Devils are woven into the very DNA of the competition.

Despite recent difficulties, which have seen the club qualify only sporadically since Sir Alex Ferguson's retirement over a decade ago, Manchester United is still Manchester United.

Tuesday evening's encounter with Roma briefly appeared set to extend the troubling run that has characterized the opening stretch of 2026–27. The Serie A outfit, prolific in front of goal this campaign, stormed into a 2–0 advantage within the opening 20 minutes.

A fortunate reprieve from penalty encroachment helped shift the momentum in the second half, before Matheus Cunha sparked a dramatic late turnaround to secure a 3–2 win. By the final whistle, it felt like the United of old had returned.

Remarkably, no club has ever recorded more Champions League victories after finding themselves two or more goals behind at some stage. This result marked the fourth occasion in the post-1992 era that United have engineered such a comeback triumph. Only Real Madrid can claim the same.

Man Utd's UCL Comeback Wins From Two (or More) Goals Down

The first instance is arguably the most iconic—the 3–2 comeback against Juventus in the 1999 semifinal second leg in Turin. Juve had surged two goals ahead within the opening 11 minutes, before Roy Keane's legendary "captain's goal" cut the deficit in the 24th minute and Dwight Yorke restored parity before the break. United had already done enough to reach their first European Cup final in 31 years, but Andy Cole's late third sealed victory on the night.

A group-stage fightback against Braga in October 2012 is less celebrated. The Portuguese club, who had Ruben Amorim featuring in midfield that evening, netted twice in the first 20 minutes through Brazilian winger Alan. Javier 'Chicharito' Hernández pulled one back before the interval, but it took later contributions from Jonny Evans and a second from Chicharito to swing the match United's way. Comeback victories were Ferguson's trademark, though this would be among his last.

Before the Roma result this week, the other occasion came when Atalanta led 2–0 at Old Trafford in October 2021 during one of Ole Gunnar Solskjær's final games in charge. Marcus Rashford and Harry Maguire scored to draw United level, before Cristiano Ronaldo—who had netted a stoppage-time winner against Villarreal the previous matchday—added his fifth goal since his sensational return to the club that season.

Real Madrid's UCL Comeback Wins From Two (or More) Goals Down

Real Madrid only completed their fourth Champions League comeback from two or more goals down this very season. Fittingly, it also came against Roma, when Los Blancos traveled to the Italian capital just last month. José Mourinho was facing his former employers, though it wasn't until the second half that they found themselves trailing by two, when Donyell Malen's brace made it 3–1 to Roma following earlier goals from Marten de Roon and Kylian Mbappé.

Real Madrid ultimately swept to a stunning victory in the final 10 minutes, with unlikely match-winners Carlos Espí, Endrick and Antonio Rüdiger all finding the net in quick succession.

Roma feature prominently in these records, as Real Madrid's very first such comeback in this competition was also against—as you might expect—Roma, back in 2004. Raúl remained the focal point of a Madrid side briefly managed by Mariano García Remón, netting twice after Roma had established a 2–0 lead at the Bernabéu through Daniele de Rossi and future Los Blancos disappointment Antonio Cassano. Raúl's second proved the turning point, following a Luís Figo penalty to level matters, before Roberto Carlos wrapped up a 4–2 win late on.

Real Madrid's other two comeback victories in this category both came within the last five seasons, including a stunning five-goal salvo against Liverpool at Anfield in a round of 16 first leg in February 2023. They had already overturned Liverpool's 2–0 lead before the interval.

A similar pattern unfolded in October 2024, when Borussia Dortmund seized a dominant first-half lead at the Bernabéu—with Donyell Malen again among the scorers. All five Real Madrid goals arrived in the second half, with Vinícius Júnior stealing the spotlight by completing a hat trick deep into stoppage time.