Two Nigerian internationals Frank Onyeka and Zaidu Sanusi, were on the losing sides as the UEFA Champions League Group C and D matches were played on Wednesday night
At the MCH Arena in Denmark, Super Eagles midfielder Frank Onyeka passed a late fitness test to earn his spot in the starting eleven for Midtjylland FC. Still, it came to nothing as the Danish club suffered a 4-0 loss to Serie A side, Atalanta.
Most of the damage was done in the first half when three goals from Duvan Zapata, Alejandro Gomez, and Luis Muriel in a 16-minute goal spree confirmed the superiority of the Italians.
A late strike from substitute Aleksey Miranchuk rubbed salt to the Danish injury.
At the Etihad Stadium in England, Manchester City defeated FC Porto 3-1 on a night when Nigerian defender Zaidu Sanusi made his Champions League debut for the Portuguese champions.
The visitors went into the halftime break levelled on scores after Sergio Aguero’s 20th-minute penalty kick cancelled out Luis Diaz opener six minutes earlier.
But Pep Guardiola’s men found their groove after the interval, and further strikes from Ilkay Gundogan and Ferran Torres made it a comfortable evening for the English Premier League side.
The impressive Sanusi was replaced in the 77th-minute of the game.
Frank Onyeka and Zaidu Sanusi both made their Super Eagles debut a few days ago when Nigeria faced Algeria in an international friendly match in Austria.