Comebacks

There was every reason for Dutch stress on Tuesday evening: The ghost of the failed 2018 World Cup qualifying campaign; Saturday’s calamitous draw with 73rd-ranked Montenegro despite leading 2-0 with less than 10 minutes to play; Louis van Gaal’s bike accident on Sunday and fractured hip, forcing him to watch this key clash against Norway from a wheelchair in a box seat; an empty De Kuip in Rotterdam after the country entered a three-week lockdown period with Covid-19 cases soaring.   

LONDON — Arsenal's Vivianne Miedema grabbed a stoppage-time equalizer as the Women's Super League leaders salvaged a 1-1 draw at north London rivals Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday.

Spurs had looked on course to hand Arsenal their first defeat of the season but were denied by Netherlands international Miedema, who towered above the defence to head home from a corner in the 92nd minute.

It just had to be…

One day after being named to Vlatko Andonovski’s USWNT squad for a pair of friendlies against Australia at the end of the month, 22-year-old midfielder Catarina Macario played a huge role in Lyon’s comeback victory over Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Wednesday.

Bayern took the lead in the 25th minute at Groupama Stadium after Kadeisha Buchanan scored an own goal with Carina Wenninger lurking.  

VALENCIA - Atlético Madrid forward Antoine Griezmann scored a sensational individual goal against Valencia on Sunday but the LaLiga champions let a two-goal lead slip in stoppage time to draw 3-3 on Sunday.

Valencia were trailing 3-1 when seven minutes of time were added on but Hugo Duro scored twice in the final stretch of the game to salvage a point, to the delight of their raucous home fans.

VENICE - AS Roma’s slump continued with a 3-2 Serie A defeat by lowly Venezia on Sunday, as the hosts recovered from surrendering the lead before halftime to launch a sensational second half fightback.

José Mourinho’s side have one win in their last seven games in all competitions and have dropped out of the top four after picking up four points from their last five league games.

“This is not the year to dream big, but it is up to me to raise the ambition and motivation. Our goal is fourth place, but for some reason we have slid to sixth," Mourinho told DAZN.

VIGO — Barcelona threw away a three-goal lead to draw 3-3 at Celta Vigo in LaLiga on Saturday in a chaotic game which underlined the scale of the task facing incoming coach Xavi Hernandez.

Celta captain Iago Aspas completed a remarkable second-half comeback from the hosts by scoring in the fifth minute of added time after he had pulled their first goal back in the 52nd and Nolito had struck in the 74th to set up a tense finish.

It was always going to be Cristiano Ronaldo. With Atalanta’s depleted squad running on fumes at Old Trafford, Harry Maguire’s 75th-minute equalizer set the stage for the inevitable: Cristiano Ronaldo hanging in the air, posterizing José Luis Palomino and directing a downward header inside the post for the win. 

It was Ronaldo’s 300th appearance across all competitions for Manchester United, and he’ll remember it fondly after completing the Red Devils’ improbable second half comeback.