Robin Van Persie combined perfectly with Wayne Rooney to give Manchester United a 2-1 win over CFR Cluj, while defending champions Chelsea scored a 4-0 victory at FC Nordjaelland in Matchday Two of the Champions League.
Two assists from Lionel Messi gave Barcelona their second-straight victory, as last year's finalists Bayern Munich were shockingly beaten by BATE Borisov. There were also wins for Celtic, Braga and Valencia, while Juventus were held to a 1-1 draw by Shakhtar Donetsk.
Wayne Rooney played in a deeper role for Manchester United and excelled, pulling the strings for his side the entire game. With Van Persie and Javier Hernandez preferred up front, Rooney was given the playmaking role and the England forward did it extremely well, setting up both of United's goals.
However, it was Cluj that opened the scoring in the 14th minute -- Pantelis Kapetanos sweeping home the goal off a pass from the right flank by Modou Sougou.
United were level on the half-hour, with Rooney chipping a perfectly weighted free kick for the prolific Dutchman Van Persie, who seemed to shoulder it into the back of the net.
The English club, like they always do, completed the comeback four minutes into the first half - the Rooney-Van Persie duo combining again. Only this time there was no shoulder -- the Dutchman providing an astute finish to another peach of a Rooney pass.
Sir Alex Ferguson's side ensured there were not too many hiccups the rest of the way as they held on for another three points for six from their first two games. The other game in Group H saw Sporting Braga score an impressive 2-0 win over Turkish giants Galatasaray away.
In Group E, Chelsea shook off a poor start, scoring a rather flattering 4-0 win over Nordsjaelland. The Danish side missed several chances over the course of the 90 minutes as Chelsea scored three goals in the last ten minutes to make it, eventually, a comfortable night for the Blues.
A brace from Juan Mata (33rd, 82nd) and one apiece from David Luiz and Ramires ensured the first three points in this year's Champions League for Chelsea. Shakhtar Donetsk held Juve to a 1-1 draw, leaving both Chelsea and Shakhtar on four points, while the Italian champions have two.
Barcelona scored their second-straight victory in group G, thanks to two brilliant assists from Lionel Messi. The Argentine wonder set up Alexis Sanchez for the first goal, before playing a through ball to Cesc Fabregas, who made no mistake in doubling the scoreline. The night was soured a little bit with, first Carles Puyol picking up a nasty arm injury, and then Sergio Busquets receiving a soft straight red card for a petulant reaction.
Celtic had earlier snatched a last-gasp winner at Spartak Moscow in a thrilling 3-2 victory.
The shock of the night, however, came with BATE Borisov getting the better of Bayern 3-1. Renan Bardini Bressan, Vitali Rodionov and Aleksandr Pavlov scored for the Belarusian side with Franck Ribery scoring the consolation goal for the German giants. In the other match of Group F, Valencia scored a comfortable 2-0 win over Lille.
Results: Group E: Juventus 1-1 Shakhtar Donetsk; Nordsjaelland 0-4 Chelsea. Group F: Valencia 2-0 Lille; BATE Borisov 3-1 Bayern Munich. Group G: Benfica 0-2 Barcelona; Spartak Moscow 2-3 Celtic. Group H: Galatasaray 0-2 Braga; CFR Cluj 1-2 Manchester United.
