Ronaldo, Morata rescue Real from Sporting upset

TIL Desk Sports/ Cristiano Ronaldo and Alvaro Morata struck in the closing minutes to seal a stunning Real Madrid comeback to beat Sporting Lisbon 2-1 to start their Champions League defence.

Madrid looked to be heading for their first home defeat in the competition for five years yesterday after Bruno Cesar’s low effort three minutes into the second-half handed Sporting a thorughly merited lead.

However, in a frantic finale, Ronaldo’s free-kick levelled the game with two minutes remaining before Morata met James Rogriguez’s cross deep into stoppage time to complete a dramatic fightback.

The clash pitted two of Europe’s most in-form teams against one another with Madrid having won 15 La Liga games on top of claiming their 11th Champions League in May, whilst Sporting are on a 13-game winning streak in Portugal.