Lukaku denies Inter Milan a late winner by clearing Alexis Sanchez's header

Romelu Lukaku is used to putting the ball in the back of the opposition's net but on Wednesday night he denied his Inter Milan team-mate a possible winner against Shakhtar Donetsk.

The Belgian striker was left with his head in his hands late on at the San Siro as the Ukrainian side earned a battling point in the Champions League encounter.

It helped Shakhtar secure third place in their group and book a spot in the Europa League at the expense of the Italians.

But Inter had a glorious opportunity to win it in the 89th minute when Manchester United flop Alexis Sanchez rose highest at a corner.

The Chilean powered his header towards goal but it could only find the head of Lukaku, who was stood directly in front of the goalkeeper, and he cleared it to safety for Shakhtar.

It remains to be seen whether the goal would have stood if it had missed Lukaku's head because the former Chelsea, United and Everton striker looked to be offside and blocking the goalkeeper's view.

Inter, who could have gone through with a win, finished bottom of the group with six points after drawing three of their six games and failing to win at home, and will not even have the consolation of the second-string competition.

United fans were quick to make a joke about the incident, with @TheManUtdWay describing the incident as 'peak 2018/19 United right there'.

@TTYTOM added: 'You can take Sanchez and Lukaku out of Manchester United, but you can't take Manchester United out of Sanchez and Lukaku'.

Meanwhile, @NumberZero29 tweeted: 'Sanchez almost put Inter through but then Lukaku realised he was playing for Gladbach and headed the ball away'.

In the same group, Real Madrid ensured they finished top with a dominant 2-0 win over Borussia Monchengladbach thanks to Karim Benzema's brace.

Monchengladbach progressed to the last-16 in second place with Shakhtar dropping into the Europa League.

'There are a lot of regrets, however, I sincerely do not feel that there has been a lack of cunning, determination or concentration,' said frustrated Inter coach Antonio Conte.

'We were lacking a goal. If you don't score you don't win.'

Lautaro Martinez rattled the crossbar in the seventh minute but Inter created few chances after that, despite dominating possession at a soggy San Siro, and mustered only four efforts on target.