Final Score: VfL Wolfsburg 5–2 Manchester United
At the Volkswagen Arena, VfL Wolfsburg produced one of the most ruthless attacking displays of the UEFA Women’s Champions League group stage so far, blowing Manchester United away in a breathless seven-goal spectacle. What began as a dream start for the visitors turned into a nightmare as the Wolves scored five times, exposing every defensive weakness in Marc Skinner’s side with relentless precision and power. The game exploded into life right from the first whistle. Early fouls flew in, corners were won and cleared, and the intensity never dropped. United thought they had landed the perfect sucker punch in the 14th minute when Melvine Malard whipped in a delicious cross from the left and Fridolina Rolfö rose highest to power a header past Stina Johannes and silence the home crowd. The lead lasted barely three minutes. Wolfsburg responded instantly. Ella Peddemors collected the ball from a poor clearance and arrowed a low drive into the bottom right corner to level the scores. From that moment, Wolfsburg never looked back. They rattled the crossbar through Svenja Huth, forced saves, and began peppering the United box. In the 37th minute, a corner caused chaos, and Camilla Küver’s left-footed shot from outside the box of more than 25 yards to the box flicked, allowing Peddemors to smash home her second from the edge of the area. Five minutes later, Lineth Beerensteyn picked up possession just outside the box, took one touch, and unleashed an absolute rocket into the top corner to make it 3-1. United were rocking. Just when it looked like the half would end in total German domination, Malard produced a moment of magic in first-half stoppage time, cutting inside and rifling a shot into the roof of the net to pull one back. Hope restored briefly. The second half was one-way traffic. Wolfsburg continued to pour forward, winning corner after corner and creating chance after chance. Beerensteyn saw a header brilliantly saved by Safia Middleton-Patel, Huth forced another stop, and the pressure finally told in the 65th minute when Sarai Linder burst down the left and squared for Beerensteyn to tap home her second and restore the two-goal cushion. United threw on Leah Galton, Jess Park, Rachel Williams, and others in search of a lifeline, but Wolfsburg were in no mood to relent. With the clock ticking into added time and eight minutes signalled by the fourth official, substitute Vivien Endemann latched onto a loose ball in the box and calmly slotted past Middleton-Patel to make it 5-2 and put the seal on a stunning victory.
Wolfsburg hit the woodwork, forced numerous saves, and were lethal from every range. United had more of the ball but managed just two corners and were repeatedly caught out on the break or from set pieces.
Top Performers
- Lineth Beerensteyn (VfL Wolfsburg) – An absolute tormentor. Pace, power, and two brilliant goals, one a thunderbolt, one a poacher’s finish. Unstoppable.
- Ella Peddemors (VfL Wolfsburg) – Two stunning strikes turned the game on its head. Composed, energetic, and everywhere in midfield.
- Melvine Malard (Manchester United) – The one bright spark in red. Assist, goal, constant threat. Fought until the final whistle.
