Talking Points From Switzerland

Manchester United still have a job to do to progress as winners of Group A in the UEFA Champions League after slipping to a late 1-0 defeat against Basel on Wednesday.

Here, we take a look at some of the talking points from the game…

SEVEN CHANGES
Jose Mourinho opted to shuffle his pack for this game, making seven changes to the side that beat Newcastle United at the weekend, including four of the back five. And for much of the game they subdued Basel’s attack, featuring talented prospect Dimitri Oberlin, only to succumb to a late goal from Michael Lang.

RETURN FOR ROJO
Following hot on the heels of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Marcos Rojo made a welcome return to the United side, at the heart of the defence alongside Chris Smalling - some 216 days after suffering a serious knee injury against Anderlecht. He came within a whisker of scoring when his deflected piledriver cannoned back off the crossbar just before the break and denied Oberlin with a brilliant last-ditch tackle in the second period. Mourinho will no doubt be delighted to be able to call on the combative Argentinian’s services in the coming weeks. Another late cameo for Zlatan was a further positive.

CAPTAIN POGBA
Having captained United for the first time from the start in September’s home game against Basel, Paul Pogba skippered the Reds against the Swiss side again as he continued to step up his comeback from injury. And he picked up where he left off against Newcastle with a mature, confident midfield display. One superb through-ball fashioned a chance for Romelu Lukaku early on and his close control was a pleasure to behold. He went off to applause from both sets of fans midway through the second half, handing the armband to Smalling.

FELLAINI IMPRESSES
Taking up an advanced midfield position for much of the evening, Marouane Fellaini was a constant aerial threat; in the first half alone, he had one header cleared off the line, sent another just wide and then glanced against the post just before the break. He also proved his worth at set-pieces in defence too, showing why he’s such a valuable member of Mourinho’s squad.

COLOURFUL ROTBLAU
Just as they were on United’s two previous visits to this relaxed city in northern Switzerland, Basel’s fans were a credit to their club. Having filled one end of the ground an hour before kick-off, they waved flags, bounced up and down and chanted almost non-stop for the whole game. United’s band of travelling fans added to an enjoyable atmosphere with their usual varied repertoire of songs.

ANY OTHER BUSINESS?
Jesse Lingard’s hour-long outing was his 100th appearance for United, of which 22 have been in European competition. The forward also avoided a yellow card, which means he will be available for the Reds' final Group A game against CSKA Moscow at Old Trafford on 5 December.