But Matheus Cunha’s struck twice after a twice-taken Bruno Fernandes penalty had given United hope to end a nine-game winless run in all competitions. The decision to hand Carrick a stay of execution looked to have backfired in a lifeless first half United performance. Manchester United roared back from 2-0 down to give beleaguered manager Michael Carrick a lifeline with a memorable 3-2 win over Roma at Old Trafford. The unrest among the home fans bordered on mutiny after Roma surged into a 2-0 lead inside 20 minutes through Matias Soule and Donyell Malen.
The Italians have now lost on all five visits to the Theatre of Dreams, most notably when Carrick scored twice in a 7-1 thrashing in the Champions League quarter-finals 19 years ago.
Malen converted the resulting penalty for his 12th goal of the season. The game was temporarily stopped midway through the first half by supporters throwing tennis balls onto the field, accompanied by chants calling for with United’s unpopular owners, the American-based Glazer family, to sell the club. However, Leonardo Balerdi’s swipe at fresh air deep inside his own box gifted Cunha the simplest task to tap in an equaliser seven minutes from time.
Gian Piero Gasperini’s lost 4-3 to Real Madrid last month after leading 3-1 with just eight minutes remaining. The Italians have now lost on all five visits to the Theatre of Dreams, most notably when Carrick scored twice in a 7-1 thrashing in the Champions League quarter-finals 19 years ago. United were dealt a further blow inside two minutes of the second half when £70 million ($94 million) signing Carlos Baleba pulled up with a suspected severe hamstring injury after bursting into the Roma box.
