Hot shots! Giggs smashes in United leveller while Kolarov cracker rescues City

Manchester City and neighbours United both needed spectacular equalisers to rescue them from defeat in their opening Champions League games.

City boss Roberto Mancini admitted that nerves got the better of his players as their debut in the competition, 43 years after the club's only appearance in the old European Cup, ended with a 1-1 draw at home to Napoli in Group A thanks to Aleksandar Kolarov’s curling freekick 16 minutes from the end.

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And a stunning 42nd-minute equaliser from veteran Ryan Giggs earned United a 1-1 draw in Lisbon after Oscar Cardozo had fired Benfica ahead in their Group C opener.

Mancini said: ‘Before the game we were so nervous because it was the first game in the Champions League after so many years.

'The players wanted to win this game and they all wanted to score. Instead if we play simply, we can play better.'

Asked if he was referring to Gareth Barry, whose failed attempt at a backheel led to Napoli scoring a breakaway goal through Edinson Cavani, Mancini added: 'I could be. A team like ours can’t concede a goal like that. When we lost the ball we didn’t have any midfielders in front of the defenders.

'Maybe we did one touch too many. Maybe in the second half for 10 or 15 minutes we conceded too much space to Naples, and when they counter attack they’re really dangerous. I think the result was fair in the end.'

City slicker: Kolarov's stunning free-kick rescues City on their Euro bow

Mancini had played down comparisons with European champions Barcelona in the build-up to the game and his caution proved well founded.

But he backed City to make up ground in what is already being dubbed the Group of Death by winning their next – and arguably toughest – game away to Bayern Munich.

'I never said we are like Barcelona,' he added. 'I think we need to improve as a team. We have fantastic players but every game in the Champions League is different. It’s important for us to play simple football and then we’ll play better, score and won’t concede.

'We will win in Munich. Bayern are a fantastic team but we can do better there because it will be the second game and we won’t be so nervous. The last two games might determine who actually goes through.'

Kolarov might have saved face for City but he broke his nose in a first-half challenge before curling home the freekick that earned Mancini’s side a point.

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The Serbia defender said: 'I broke my nose but it’s not important. My goal , I'm only happy if we win. But Napoli were very good and it was important we didn't lose the first game.’

City could count themselves unfortunate to hit the woodwork twice through Yaya Toure and Sergio Aguero, but Napoli were also denied by the bar in the first half when Ezequiel Lavezzi’s curling effort beat Joe Hart and then Vincent Kompany cleared off the line from Marek Hamsik.

Kompany said: 'We tried to do too well and play too quickly at times, and to be honest that’s what cost us on the goal. But we’ll learn from this game and we've got a good enough team to see us through.

'It was more open than I thought it would be but we should have scored a goal or two in the first half.

‘You could see with everything around this game it was very different to the Premier League.

'We’ve got players who have played in the Champions League many times before and we met a very good Napoli side. Credit to the, they got exactly what they needed.'

He nose best: Kolarov suffered a break in the first half