Nemanja Matic thinks Manchester United used all their European know-how to grab a 1-0 win at Benfica in the Champions League this evening.
The opening exchanges at the Estadio da Luz were nothing to write home about, with the first 45 minutes characterised by slow play, with Manchester United causing little in the way of problems for Benfica.
But Jose Mourinho's side took the lead just after the hour mark when Benfica goalkeeper Mile Svilar made a big mistake on his Champions League debut.
The 18-year-old goalkeeper carried a free-kick from Marcus Rashford over his own goalline, handing Manchester United the lead.
The Red Devils also had efforts from Matic and Henrikh Mkhitaryan, while Benfica did not force David de Gea to make a save throughout the 90 minutes.
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It ended 1-0 to the visitors and Matic believes Manchester United worked hard to claim all three points.
"We scored a goal from Marcus Rashford's free-kick and we had more chances", he told BT Sport.
"We played well in the second half and played well enough to take three points. It was hard for us but we managed to win.
"The manager said to us to try and shoot and get some crosses towards their goalkeeper because he is young and playing in his first game.
"This is football and I know he is a great goalkeeper and I wish him well for the future.
"We had control, some difficulties in the first 30 minutes but then we controlled the pitch.
"We used our experience.
"We could not find the second goal but did not make any mistakes at the back", the midfielder added.
The other game in Manchester United's group saw Basel win 2-0 away at CSKA Moscow.
