Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho has claimed "the best team lost" after 10-man Manchester United were knocked out of the Champions League.
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United went ahead in the last-16 second leg tie before Nani was controversially dismissed for a high challenge.
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Cristiano Ronaldo, on his return to Old Trafford, then tapped in the winner after Luka Modric's stunning equaliser.
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"Independent of the decision, the best team lost. We didn't deserve to win but football is like this," Mourinho said.
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Real Madrid are now the only team to win away to Manchester United twice in the Champions League Cristiano Ronaldo's winning goal was his eighth goal in eight games in the competition this season.
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Following a 1-1 draw in Spain, United had edged a tight second-leg opening in which captain Nemanja Vidic struck the post with a powerful header.
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They finally took the lead - on the night and on aggregate - at the start of the second half, when Sergio Ramos deflected Nani's cross into his own net.
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The match then turned in Real's favour just before the hour mark when referee Cuneyt Cakir dismissed the Portuguese for a high boot that made contact with Alvaro Arbeloa's rib-cage.
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Mourinho's side took advantage of the decision in clinical fashion. Former Tottenham player Modric curled in a sublime equaliser after he came off the substitute's bench, and Ronaldo scored from close range after a stylish move.
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"My feeling is that Manchester United were playing very well, were very compact and aggressive in a good way," Mourinho added. "I doubt that 11 v 11 we win the match.
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"I know Manchester United are giants, not just physically but mentally. I know they have a manager who can motivate then, but I was waiting for us to play in a different way."