On Wednesday April 7th in 2010 Manchester United hosted Germans Bayern Munich at Old Trafford looking to overturn a 2-1 deficit from the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final.
The first 40 minutes could hardly have gone better for the Red Devils and in particular Nani, but the Portuguese would be robbed of arguably his finest hour in a United shirt as Bayern staged a comeback.
Alex Ferguson’s side had thrown away a commanding position in the away fixture in Munich, with Nani’s corner converted by Wayne Rooney to put them into the lead at the Allianz Arena. However United collapsed in the final 15 minutes to concede twice and leave them needing a strong performance at the Theatre of Dreams.
Nani had emerged into one of his side’s key players since finding form in January of that season. A struggle to impress Ferguson during the first half of the campaign had led to speculation the former Sporting man could leave the club during the transfer window, but a string of improved showings resulted in Nani being a dead cert to start against Bayern.
A fantastic brace in the first half included a sumptuous backheel and a lethal shot from outside the box, putting Nani on course for perhaps his best night in a United shirt. However, Bayern staged a comeback – aided by a red card for United’s Rafael just five minutes after the restart – and ultimately progressed on away goals after a 3-2 defeat thanks to Arjen Robben’s stunning volley.
On this day ten years ago, Nani was on fire in the first half with two goals as Man Utd went 3-0 up against Bayern in the Champions League#onthisdayPA 2010
— S Gillen 🇵🇹 Portuguese Abroad (@SeanGillen9) April 7, 2020
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Nani continued to improve at United and the following season saw him enjoy his best campaign for the club, earning the Manchester United Players’ Player of the Year in 2011. Bayern meanwhile went on to reach the final, where they were beaten by José Mourinho’s Internazionale at the Bernabeu.
By Sean Gillen
