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Wayne Rooney's late goal ended Manchester United's goal drought and earned the Red Devils a narrow 1-0 victory over CSKA Moscow.The England captain moved level with Denis Law on 237 goals for the club when he nodded home Jesse Lingard's cross, ending United's goal drought in all competitions at 404 minutes.
The late strike moved United top of a highly competitive Group B table on seven points, earning their first home win over Russian opponents in European action.
It also spared manager Louis van Gaal from a fourth consecutive game without a goal, something the club had not endured since 1992.
United started brightly in their bid to end a barren spell in front of goal that stretched back to Anthony Martial's effort in the 1-1 draw in Moscow.
The French forward was given the chance to play down the middle in the reverse fixture, as he was picked to start alongside his captain Rooney up front.
It was Rooney who skewed an early attempt wide with his left foot, while strike partner Martial failed to get enough on a beautiful long pass from Daley Blind to steer the ball beyond Igor Akinfeev.
However, the tactical switch still could not help United find a way to break the deadlock in the first 45 minutes.
Lingard, picked ahead of Ander Herrera, wasted a clear sight of goal when he lifted a shot over the bar on the half-hour mark.

Yet it was Marcos Rojo who had the best chance of the opening half, the defender volleying Ashley Young's right-wing cross wide of the target after CSKA had failed to spot him creeping into space at the far post.
The same player failed to hit the target with a header in the opening minutes of the second half as the hosts' frustration grew.
Marouane Fellaini was introduced after 65 minutes, though Van Gaal's decision to take off Martial was greeted with boos from a disgruntled home crowd.
Rooney had claims for a penalty waved away before failing to convert Juan Mata's pass, CSKA getting back to twice deny him converting from close range.
The gloom in the ground nearly deepened when David de Gea and Chris Smalling denied CSKA substitute Seydou Doumbia in quick succession on the break, though soon after the ball was in the net at the other end.
Lingard's volleyed cross was converted by Rooney, bringing him level with the legendary Law. The sense of relief from the home fans was evident, and most likely mirrored on the bench
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Hernanes was sent off as 10-man Juventus were held to a 1-1 draw by Borussia Monchengladbach in the Champions League on Tuesday night.

Juve would have qualified for the knockout stages with a victory, but the midfielder's second half sending off for a rash challenge ended their hopes of a win.
Gladbach, who went into the game on the back of three consecutive victories across all competitions, took the lead inside the first 20 minutes through Fabian Johnson, but Stephan Lichtsteiner's equaliser ended their hopes of qualifying from Group D with two games left to play.
There had been doubts over whether Lichtsteiner would play football again when he was forced to undergo heart surgery to correct a defect at the start of October, and he was a surprise inclusion in Allegri's starting line-up.
His selection proved decisive in a tightly contested match, and his finish from Paul Pogba's exquisite pass put the final touch on a fabulous goal.
Last season's runners-up Juve will seal their place in the last 16 if they defeat Manchester City next time out, while the best Gladbach can hope for now is third place in the group and a spot in the Europa League.
Wearing their striking pink change strip, Juve started on the front foot and almost opened the scoring when Giorgio Chiellini headed a free-kick down for Patrice Evra, who shot narrowly over with the outside of his left foot.
Gladbach soon began to find their flow, and Mahmoud Dahoud almost struck one of the goals of the tournament when he controlled a clearance and thumped a wonderful swerving drive that crashed into the crossbar with Gianluigi Buffon well beaten.
Shortly afterwards, the home side were ahead courtesy of an error by Chiellini, who slipped as he tried to clear Oscar Wendt's cross, allowing Raffael to play in Johnson to get away from Evra and fire an angled shot into the left corner of the net.
Chiellini almost atoned for his error when he out-jumped Granit Xhaka to head narrowly wide from a corner, and Gladbach goalkeeper Yann Sommer then had to be alert to keep out Evra's powerful downward header with a fine save.
Just before half-time, Pogba conjured a moment of magic for Juve, scooping a sensational lobbed pass into the path of Lichtsteiner, and the Switzerland international lashed a first-time volley beyond Sommer to level.
Pogba fired narrowly wide shortly after the restart as Juve maintained the momentum that Lichtsteiner's equaliser had given them, and Alvaro Morata had a shot deflected wide as they probed for a winner.
The visitors were in the ascendancy when Hernanes slid into a challenge with Alvaro Dominguez two-footed with his studs up, and referee Bjorn Kuipers showed the Brazilian a straight red card.
Despite the setback, Juve continued to press and Pogba went close again with a free-kick that swerved narrowly wide of Sommer's near post.
The home side then came agonisingly close to scoring the winner when Lars Stindl was denied by Buffon, and the veteran goalkeeper made another brilliant late save from Thorgan Hazard to earn Juventus the draw and send Gladbach out.
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Manchester City booked their place in the knockout stages of the Champions League with a fine 3-1 win over Sevilla on Tuesday night.

City needed an injury-time winner from Kevin De Bruyne to secure a 2-1 victory over the La Liga side in the reverse fixture last month, but were dominant from the outset at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan.
The travelling supporters continued their frosty relationship with Uefa by again booing the Champions League anthem before kick-off, but they were roaring with delight soon afterwards as Raheem Sterling and Fernandinho put City 2-0 up inside 11 minutes.
Sevilla battled their way back into the contest as Benoit Tremoulinas headed home before Wilfried Bony added City's third nine minutes before half-time.
Juventus' second consecutive draw against Borussia Monchengladbach means Pellegrini's men will head to Turin on matchweek five as group leaders aiming to take another significant scalp heading into the knockout rounds.
The Chilean's decision to include Fernando in a holding role granted attacking license to Fernandinho and the midfielder was at the heart of much of City's fine work during a devastating opening spell.
Having had a penalty appeal rejected, the Brazil international strode forward and threaded a sublime pass for Sterling to slot home left-footed in the eighth minute.
Roles were reversed three minutes later - with Sterling pouncing on a slip from Sevilla full-back Coke to feed Bony, whose shot was magnificently saved by Sergio Rico before Fernandinho nodded in the rebound.
Rico's attempted heroics were almost in vain once again when he got down to tip a strike from former Sevilla winger Jesus Navas onto the base of his right post.
Fernando Llorente fired wastefully over on the end of Vicente Iborra's flick on, but Sevilla reduced the deficit after 25 minutes with a wonderful team goal.
Vitolo deftly picked out Coke, who atoned for his earlier error by skipping past Nicolas Otamendi and chipping a cross over Joe Hart for his fellow full-back Tremoulinas to charge in for a simple headed finish.
After Sevilla defender Adil Rami blasted into the side netted, City restored their two-goal cushion nine minutes before the break as Navas collected a Hart clearance to twist past Tremoulinas and cut the ball back for Bony to pick out the bottom corner.
Unai Emery's team began the second half on the front foot, seeking to respond once more, but they were indebted to sharp reactions from Rico to deny Fernandinho a second - Sterling crafting the opportunity with another mazy run in the 53rd minute.
Enjoying arguably his finest performance since joining City from Liverpool in a protracted close-season transfer, Sterling then had a strike blocked on the end of a Fernandinho pass that was delightfully dummied by Bony.
A one-two between Ivory Coast team-mates Bony and Yaya Toure saw the latter curl wide as the match entered the final 20 minutes, with Sevilla looking increasingly low on confidence.
The Europa League holders now trail second placed Juventus by five points and can't overtake City due to an inferior head-to-head record.
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A perfect finish from Nacho decided matters in Real Madrid's favour at the Bombonera, as the Spaniards overcame Paris Saint-Germain 1-0 in the Champions League.

The defender had only been on the pitch for two minutes after replacing Marcelo, but converted a wonderful first-time effort from out wide after Toni Kroos' shot had been deflected.
Despite the attacking talent on display from both sides it proved to be the only goal of the game, as Keylor Navas and Kevin Trapp both made a string of saves to keep the scoreline tight to the end.
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Arturo Vidal has issued a warning to Arsenal as Bayern Munich prepare to host them in the Champions League on Wednesday.
The Bavarian side suffered a 2-0 defeat at the Emirates Stadium on matchday three, with Arsene Wenger's men recovering from losses to Dinamo Zagreb and Olympiacos to keep their qualification hopes alive.
However, the Chilean midfielder insists that Bayern will not be so generous to their opponents at Allianz Arena, and says a die Roten victory is the only outcome they are targeting.
"We'll show Arsenal the real Bayern on Wednesday," Vidal told Bild am Sonntag.
"Our confidence is high. This time we'll take our chances and take the three points."
Arsenal enter the tie in excellent form however, having climbed to the top of the Premier League after going unbeaten there since October and won five of their last six matches in all competitions.
A victory for the Gunners would see them draw level with Bayern – who were held to a 0-0 draw by Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga on Friday – on six points with two Group F games remaining
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Manuel Neuer insisted he played well in Bayern Munich's 2-0 Champions League defeat to Arsenal on Tuesday - although he did admit responsibility for the crucial opening goal.
Neuer produced a string of fine saves to keep Arsenal at bay, the pick of which being a stunning first-half block to keep out a Theo Walcott header, but then blundered horribly as Bayern fell behind.
Germany goalkeeper Neuer opted to try to claim a hopeful Santi Cazorla punt into the box but got nowhere near it, missing his punch completely, allowing Olivier Giroud to bundle the ball home.

Mesut Ozil added a late second, despite Neuer's best attempts to prevent his close-range effort crossing the line.
Neuer told UEFA.com: "Basically, I played well. But it was my big mistake that led to Arsenal’s first goal.
"I think a draw would have been a more appropriate result."
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Arsenal forward Olivier Giroud has hailed Petr Cech's performance as the key factor in the Gunners' Champions League win over Bayern Munich on Tuesday.
The Czech Republic goalkeeper pulled off a string of fine saves to keep the Bavarians out at the Emirates Stadium, with Giroud and Mesut Ozil goals ensuring Arsene Wenger's side claimed a crucial three points.
The result still leaves the Gunners three points adrift of Bayern, and second-placed Olympiacos, although ensures the north Londoners remain in with a chance of reaching the last 16, with three group matches remaining.
Giroud told BT Sport: "This goal was a relief for us. We did well until this goal and we defended really well. We knew they would have the ball because they are doing well in possession. If we can see the ball possession they have 70, they dominated that but we showed passion and finally we got a goal and finished the work with Mesut's goal.
"We needed this win to stay in the Champions League to qualify for the next stage. We knew it would be hard but we have succeeded. We have to thank Petr. He has done a fantastic game we are all pleased tonight. We played a fantastic team and it's nice for the future. We need to focus on the following games now."
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Goals from Olivier Giroud and Mesut Ozil gave Arsenal an important 2-0 win over Bayern Munich in Tuesday's Champions League game, handing Bayern their first defeat of the season.
Giroud, who netted the winner for Arsene Wenger's side, came off the bench in the second half to score in strange circumstances as Bayern goalkeeper Manuel Neuer flapped at a free-kick, and the Frenchman headed onto his arm and into the net after 77 minutes.
Mesut Ozil then dobuled the Gunners lead in added time tapping in from close range, with the referee deeming the ball over the line despite Neuer managing to hurl the ball out of goal.
Both sides had chances throughout as Theo Walcott missed saw a first-half header remarkably saved by Neuer, while Petr Cech was on hand for Arsenal to keep Robert Lewandowski at bay in the second-half
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I think Arsenal are a great value bet at 11/4, even if you backed them at +1 in the handicap. They've got good momentum, they're playing well, Alexis Sanchez is in form, Mesut Ozil is in form, Aaron Ramsey and Olivier Giroud getting goals is another plus.
Bayern have won every game in the Bundesliga, averaging three goals a game, we know that, but anyone that watches them, which I do quite a bit, will know that you can get at them. They've chopped and changed quite a bit at the back and they had David Alaba, who is a left-back, playing at centre-back at the weekend and Manuel Neuer makes their defence look better than they are.
Bayern will want to play an open game of football and look to Robert Lewandowski and Thomas Muller to pick them off, but that will suit Arsenal with the way they are playing right now, especially with Theo Walcott's pace and movement.
It's a must-win situation for Arsenal, I don't think a draw is good enough, but I do believe they can get the three points.
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After two matches and with no points on the board, anything but a win against the Bundesliga champions, who have just set a record of nine consecutive league wins, would likely see them miss out on a place in the latter stages.
It's not all doom and gloom for Gunners fans, though, and Goal, with the help of Opta, have taken a look at five reasons why there is still room to believe that Arsene Wenger and his side CAN turn things around.









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The 30-year-old has missed Arsenal's last three matches against Liverpool, Newcastle and Stoke City with a virus and is not yet ready to make his return to action.
Mertesacker, however, trained with the rest of the first-team squad on Tuesday and Sky sources understand he could feature for Arsenal in their clash with Premier League champions Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.
Arsenal have not conceded a goal in the absence of the Germany World Cup winner and manager Arsene Wenger is likely to continue with the central defensive pairing of Gabriel Paulista and Laurent Koscielny for the clash with Zagreb in Croatia.
Mertesacker has featured three times for Arsenal this season, including the 1-0 Community Shield victory over Chelsea at Wembley last month.


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