FC Rostov held Manchester United to a draw in the first leg of their Europa League last-16 tie in Russia, but Jose Mourinho's side did grab a valuable away goal.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan put United in front with a close-range finish following some good build-up play by Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

Rostov however equalised in the second-half through forward Aleksandr Bukharov, who latched on to Timofei Kalachev's pass, to ensure that it is all to play for in the second-leg next week.

Here are five things we learned:

Rostov vs Manchester United player ratings Show all 11 1 /11 Rostov vs Manchester United player ratings Rostov vs Manchester United player ratings Sergio Romero - 5 out of 10 Could have stood much taller against Aleksandr Bukharov and perhaps prevented the goal. Rostov vs Manchester United player ratings Chris Smalling - 4 out of 10 Almost as culpable as Jones for the goal. Some simple communication between the pair would have prevented Rostov’s goal. Rostov vs Manchester United player ratings Phil Jones - 4 out of 10 Cost his side when he failed to track Bukharov's run over his shoulder. Too easily beaten by the long ball out the back. Rostov vs Manchester United player ratings Marcos Rojo – 6 out of 10 United’s best defender, though that is not saying much. Produced an important, last-ditch tackle to deny Rostov on the break late on. Rostov vs Manchester United player ratings Ashley Young - 6 out of 10 Showed purpose from wing-back in the first-half but ultimately lacked a telling end-product. Rostov vs Manchester United player ratings Daley Blind - 5 out of 10 Left with too much responsibility as a lone man on the left flank. Struggled to offer United the width they required to penetrate. Rostov vs Manchester United player ratings Marouane Fellaini - 7 out of 10 One player who suited the adverse conditions underfoot and repeated balls over the top. Combined his physicality with a rare bit of technique in the build-up to Henrikh Mkhitaryan's goal. Rostov vs Manchester United player ratings Ander Herrera – 5 out of 10 Game for the rough tackling that defined the first half hour but offered little more. Rostov vs Manchester United player ratings Paul Pogba – 4 out of 10 Failed to impose himself on a game once again. Jose Mourinho is trying to play him into form but he remains some way off. Rostov vs Manchester United player ratings Henrikh Mkhitaryan – 7 out of 10 A promising return to the side, curtailed by his second-half substitution. There at the right place at the right time to put away the opener. Rostov vs Manchester United player ratings Zlatan Ibrahimovic – 6 out of 10 A sublime assist for the opener, then too quiet after it, but rarely received service in the right areas.

Mkhitaryan is increasingly influential

The forward will be key over the next two weeks (Getty)

It was a gamble for Mourinho to start the in-form Armenian forward, with the player still recovering from the hamstring injury that ruled him out of the EFL Cup final.

It was a gamble that paid off. Ibrahimovic did a fine job with his back to goal, of holding up the play and swapping passes with Marouane Fellaini, but Mkhitaryan was their real attacking threat, impressing in a central role and repeatedly darting in behind Rostov’s defence.

He took his goal with confidence and, given his goal-scoring form, it’s amazing to think that he made such a slow start to life at Old Trafford. He will be key for United in their next two Premier League matches as well as the FA Cup quarter-final against Chelsea, which Ibrahimovic is suspended from.

Mourinho was right about the pitch

Mourinho was ridiculed by some quarters of the press after his angry assessment of Rostov’s pitch on Wednesday. But the manner in which the surface quickly cut up — vehicle tracks easier to spot than patches of green — justified his less than impressed reaction.

The terrible surface meant watching this became something of a struggle as both sides struggled to string more than a few passes together. In the first-half, United’s passing accuracy stood at just 65.37%: the lowest it has been all season.

Mourinho will have watched the match through his fingers as his players slipped all over the pitch, although the only team to suffer any injuries were Rostov, with the defender Granat substituted early on with a shoulder complaint.

United impress with a three-man defence

United's three-man defence looked solid (Getty)

Playing against a highly physical team on the kind of surface a Sunday League team would have turned their nose up at, Jose Mourinho resorted to playing a back three against Rostov – one of the few occasions in his career when he has switched to the formation.

Since Chelsea switched to a 3-5-2 in September they have played some utterly sublime football under Antonio Conte: Mourinho’s reasons for abandoning his favoured 4-2-3-1 were a little more pragmatic.

United frequently went direct, Ibrahimovic doing an excellent good job of holding the ball up for Mkhitaryan. And at the back they looked largely robust. Mourinho will have been disappointed at the manner in which Bukharov squeezed between Smalling and Jones but all things considered, he will be pleased that his team restricted Rostov to just the one goal.

Rostov right to leave Azmoun on the bench

Azmoun was surprisingly left on the bench (AFP/Getty)

“Could Rostov's Azmoun be Iran's Zlatan Ibrahimović?” the official Uefa website purred ahead of this match. BT commentator Darren Fletcher went even further, referring to the player as the 'Iranian Lionel Messi'.

But, surprisingly, Rostov manager Ivan Daniliants kept his prodigiously talented 22-year-old forward on the bench until the 70th minute. Ultimately, it was the right call. The man that started in place of him, the experienced Aleksandr Bukharov, scored with a wonderful volley, and proved a handful for United’s defence all night.

Azmoun eventually came on to replace him and was greeted with a rapturous reception from the Olimp-2 crowd, but had limited chance to impress. The striker, who has recently been linked with a move to Liverpool, will hope for a longer chance to show what he can do in the return leg next week.

Russia’s supporters eager to impress

After the horrific scenes between Russian and English supporters that marred Euro 2016, the Russian authorities were on something of a charm offensive for United’s long-trip to Rostov.

As The Independent’s Chief Sports Writer Ian Herbet revealed ahead of the match, Russian police saw the Rostov trip as their first opportunity to engineer cordial relations and, thankfully, the match passed without major incident.