Evening all: Well this, one of the most resonant of all European ties, should be tasty. Manchester United, with five clean sheets in their last five games in all competitions, have won all three of their home matches against Benfica and were victorious in six, drawing one and losing one of all games against tonight's visitors. Their home Champions League record since 2005, too, is formidable – one defeat in their past 34 matches at Old Trafford.
The most memorable, of all, of course was the 4-1 victory at Wembley in 1968 that made Manchester United England's first European Cup winners. I commend to you Gordon Burn's Best and Edwards for a magnificent read about United's continental quest as well as the lives of the two subjects.
Sir Alex Ferguson's programme notes are understandably influenced by those past meetings. "We will try to do justice to the memory of Sir Matt's tussles with Benfica in the old days because people of vision are rare," Ferguson wrote.
"I always felt Jock Stein knew what was needed for football, and so did Sir Matt. I just hope I measure up in that way. The memories of many Manchester United supporters will fly back to those early days in European competition when George Best mesmerised Portugal's finest in the Stadium of Light, and then ultimately to the night Sir Matt Busby achieved his European dream in 1968."
Benfica are enjoying an excellent start to their season and are unbeaten in 20 games in all tournaments in 2011-12. I was sad to see Javier Saviola had to miss Friday's match against Naval. Anyone who played the old Championship manager at the turn of the millennium will have fond memories of the wee playmaker. Still, Oscár Cardozo and Pablo Aimar are usually a treat to watch.
There's no team news yet but there was a rumour on Twitter, apparently, that was just called across the office by someone who monitors these things that Wayne Rooney was not on United's team bus. Whether that's true or not, and what implications it has, we'll leave for official confirmation.
Both sides have eight points, three clear of Basle. Victory for Benfica would guarantee first place and a draw would put both through to the knockout round if Otelul Galati defeat the Swiss.
I'll be back with team news asap.
Here are your teams: And Rooney is absent.
Manchester United: De Gea; Fabio, Jones, Ferdinand, Evra; Fletcher, Carrick; Valencia, Young, Nani; Berbatov.
Substitutes: Lindegaard, Giggs, Smalling, Park, Hernandez, R Da Silva, Gibson.
Benfica: Artur Moraes, Maxi Pereira, Luisao, Garay, Emerson, Witsel, Javi Garcia, Bruno Cesar, Aimar, Rodrigo Moreno, Gaitan.
Substitutes: Eduardo, Amorim, Cardozo, Nolito, Nelson Oliveira, Matic,
Miguel Vitor.
Referee: Cuneyt Cakir (Turkey)
Stat zone: I don't have much to tell you, other than that a victory for Manchester United would be their 100th victory in the Champions League since Uefa's year zero, and obviously Sir Alex Ferguson's too. It's taters in Manchester, judging by the thickness of Steve McClaren's coat and muffler. I'm flying on painkillers and caffeine as I've got the beginnings of a cold. I could do with a pre-match capful of the hardstuff as Jimmy Murphy used to dispense pre-match. I'll have to settle for whisky-a-go-go when I get home.
Portuguese crumble: John Collins on Sky has just said if Benfica go one behind "they'll crumble". Has he seen them this season, or United? Rooney has a hip injury according to Ferguson. "Jimmy Murphy's hardstuff?" writes Gary Naylor. "Given the virulence of some the lurgies affecting Londoners, I think you need one of Stan Cullis' more exotic concoctions." Monkey glands? Or was that Major Buckley?
1968 and all that: They've just shown brief highlights of the final on TV. I must have seen the goals a thousand times but Manchester United's second, third and fourth goals were all classics. Charlton's shot on the turn to score the fourth was a remarkably good finish, the way he inched ahead of the defender then clipped his shot around the corner. Some United fans of my acquaintance don't like him, because of his grumpiness when they've met him. But what a player.
Benfica are in gold: And have big-flapping Mick Ferguson/Mick Coop-style collars. That's all the Ask Hadley impressions you're getting.
1 min: United kick off and knock it back to De Gea via Fabio. The keeper lashes the ball up the right wing where Emerson knocks it out of play as Berbatov tried to control it.
3 min: Luisao knocks Young flying from the second throw-in of the phase. Young tried to go around him but the defender's momentum upends Young. It's a rotten back-post delivery from the free-kick on the left and sails beyond Jones and into touch.
GOAL!! Manchester United 0-1 Benfica (Jones og) Excellent link up between Gaitan and Wistel, Gaitan going beyond Evra and knocking in a cross/shot with his left foot about parallel with the six-yard box on the right. Jones has a brainstorm and mistimes his clearance facing goal, paying the price.
7 min: Just erased the last post that featured Bruno Cesar's shot from the edge of a box after Benfica won a corner on the right where they're making fine progress against Evra, Gaitan cutting inside to join Aimar and leaving Fletcher and Carrick overloaded. I won't tell you the City score as a couple of you have requested, since you're planning to watch it later.
9 min: The crowd's in fine voice, in stark contrast to the eerie silence during the Galati match. Nani and Young link up on the left, Nani playing it back out to the wing and Nani cuts inside and without looking up lays the ball straight to … Aimar. That lad makes you tear your hair out still. Not as often as he once did. But every now and again he just doesn't think.
12 min: "I was lucky enough to catch a glimpse of the great man [Sir Bobby C] when I visited Manchester and went on the tour of Old Trafford." writes Edward Lee. "He was signing his book inside the Megastore. I did not approach him but respectfully gave him a wave from a distance. Whew, wouldn't want the old man to be grumpy at me." I doubt he's universally so, but a few of my friends have reported trying to have a word with him on European trips in the hotel before matches and he's not been very forthcoming. They may expect too much. Who's to say.
14 min: Gaitan and Maxi Pereira this time combine on the right and are giving Evra a runaround because Nani's not tracking back and Fletcher has his hands full by the clever movement of Witsel and Rodrigo. This doesn't look too good for United so far and so few were Ferdinand's options when the ball was played back to him he had to turn and roll it back to De Gea. No one comes and takes the ball off the back four so they go long and it doesn't work.
16 min: The other side of Nani as his control, quick feet and speed take him past three Benfica players on a run beginning in the centre-circle. Garay cynically hacks him down and United have a free-kick about 30 yards out, which Nani takes tamely, getting it over the wall but straight down Artur's throat.
18 min: Good point, well made, by Randhir Badal, on the Likely Lads trying to avoid the City score: "You do know the latest scores are on the right hand side on this page, right?" Bruno Cesar plays a ball straight down the middle and splits the United central midfielders. Witsel sprints on to it and only Ferdinand's quick thinking stops him getting a shot away on the edge of the box. Here's a stat from my colleague Mark Redding, via OptaJoe: "Man Utd have only lost one of the previous seven CL games in which they've conceded a goal in the opening 5 mins (v Bayern, Apr 2001). Grit." They need a touch of the Rooster Cogburns on this showing.
21 min: Young and Berbatov have an exchange of passes but the shot from Young, I think, (sorry I was distracted by the scores wheeshing across the bottom of the screen) loses its power because the player slipped as he hit it and gently skitters towards Artur.
23 min: There's some really scratty passing from United, made all the more obvious by the paucity of players in positions where they're capable of receiving the ball. Carrick and Fletcher have been overrun four or five times. If Rooney was there he'd drop back but Young in his position isn't quite so conscientious about defending.
25 min:Jones defends a free-kick well, giving Javi Garcia a hellishly difficult header by challenging strongly in the jump. The Benfica midfielder spears it out for a goalkick.
27 min: McClaren mixes some of the tamest comments you could think of with some genuine insights. He's just said that United have never been a team that runs the ball from midfield, not since Keane was slowed down by injuries anyway, but they're being forced to do that here and they haven't got the players who can make it work. They eke out a hard chance at the edge of the box, Fabio receiving with his back to goal, but when he turns he hits a weak shot against the defender's shins.
GOAL!! Manchester United 1-1 Benfica (Berbatov) United free-kick, 30 yards out, after another cynical but well-judged foul to halt United's thrust. Young taps it out to the left and Nani runs straight at Maxi, spinning in a cross towards the penalty spot where Berbatov leaps to meet it and glance it in at Artur's left-hand post. Lovely cross. Fine header.
32 min: And for a two-minute spell after the equaliser, the game goes bananas, Young getting free of Javi Garcia, bursting into space but hitting his shot at the keeper who had rushed out to save. Then Benfica clear it straight up the other end and almost cause chaos in the United defence and De Gea dives to save a shot from the left, palming into the centre of the goal and United recover. Straight up the other end United went, Valencia getting behind Emerson and to the byline and crossing deep to Berbatov but the keeper snuffs out the chance.
35 min: This is far more like it. United have grown in confidence, Carrick finding his range and freeing Fabio, who plays a one-two with Valencia then the right-back wins a throw-in, from which Nani's skill gets him a tiddly bit of space to create a chance that is blocked.
37 min: Bruno Cesar is fouled by Fabio who clips his ankles. Cesar executes three rolls on the floor and sits there clutching his nads. "United should always score an early own goal in these Champions League group matches. It avoids the tedium of a 1-0 win, wakes the crowd up, kicks the players up the aris … nice work Phil Jones." That pertinent point comes from Adam Hirst. Ta.
39 min: Berbatov taps the ball into the net but the whistle had gone about five seconds earlier after he again linked up well with Nani. Offside I'm presuming, I was sidetracked by this joyous shot of Mick Coop from Adam Hirst.
41 min: Berbarotica following some Youngerotica in a move begun by the decidedly improved Carrick. Young, found by Carrick with a first-time pass, chipped the ball up the middle to a foot to the left of centre where Berbatov controlled it with those soft, soft feet, well one of them, and dinked it up to have a shot with his right that was deflected over the bar. Does anyone control a dropping ball better than him? Cantona did, Bergkamp did, but only Messi now has the same control.
43 min: Another fine pass from Carrick from the centre-circle, picking out Berbatov on the left. He'd just strayed inches offside, though, sadly. Not that he was happy with the decision.
45min: The half ends with only 12 seconds added on when Young overhits his pass, designed for Valencia's maraud up the right wing, and it skips into touch.
Half time: Back in 10 minutes. More stats from Opta Joe: "Dimitar Berbatov played 1,262 minutes of Champions League football between scoring v Celtic in Oct 2008 and v Benfica tonight. Drought." Well it's ended. The rain has come. Coop scoop from Jeremy Millar: "I used to love Mick Coop. Every time we won he used to give out stamps to the fans. Wasn't that often, admittedly." Stamps? Was he a postie? And here's Paul Taylor: "On McClaren's take on the lacking skill of the United midfield. Is it that they can't do that? Or that they can do it well enough to be successful only at a lower level of play? I hope the latter." I suppose he means the latter, though neither are box-to-box midfielders in any meaningful sense. Fletcher harries and scarries and is underrated but better as a short-passer. Carrick doesn't have the engine or the lack of discipline to burst forward, or a trick to get past a central midfielder on the run.
47min: And we're off, United coming out two minutes early. David Cope points out: "Fox Soccer commentary in the US just provided this nugget of insight from Alan Parry and his partner. 'They're experts at fouling in these types of areas to disrupt the game …' and then to clarify who he is talking about, 'the foreign players'. Oh I see." You've got the same feed as us, David.
49min: Lovely run from Nani down the left, nudging the ball ahead of him and recapturing it. Then he turns, slips but still prods his pass through to Young on the left of the box but his shot, from a tight angle, arcs out of play.
51min: Thery're still erratic through the middle of their midfield defensively, though, and Gaitan has a shot that he sends down De Gea's throat. Then Valencia storms up the right, cuts it back to Berbatov, who flicks it to Fletcher but the Scot slips as he shoots.
53min: More ace footwork from Berbatov down the inside left channel when Nani rolled the ball back to him. He bursts into the box, takes it around the defender and rolls it back to Fletcher who soots. It's blocked. The pass was a bit short. Bad Berba, but then some penalty box pinball ensues that ends when United win a freekick on the edge of the area which Nani smacks straight into the wall.
55min: Berbatov is now receiving treatment on his ankle off the pitch. Not that we here at MBM Towers are obsessed with him or anything. He comes back on, wide on the left, lays it off so Evra and Nani can execute a triangle and Nani knocks it into the box to the Bulgarian. He shifts it to the right, Fabio shoots, it's beaten away, then Berbatov picks it up again and strokes it to Fletcher but again Benfica throw their bodies in the way.
57min: Fletcher has had a lot of shooting opportunities on the edge of the box as if he were Scholes of a decade ago. It's not his strength but it's obvious he's been pushed up and that's disrupted Benfica's tempo considerably. "You just mentioned that Nani 'prodded a pas through'," writes Dan Poole. "Seeing as a pas is a ballet move, I'm not sure whether it was a spelling mistake or not..." I'm not that bright, Dan. Or terpsichorean.
GOAL!! Manchester United 2-1 Benfica (Fletcher) Cross from Valencia, controlled by Berbatov on the volley at the far post, knocking it back to Evra. The captain crosses, Benfica's defence tries to play offside but are too late and when the ball's knocked down Fletcher took two bites to score from five yards out.
GOAL!! Manchester United 2-2 Benfica (Aimar) Sloppy is the word de nos jours. Trotted out to describe poor defending. And it was here again, United not dealing with Benfica's strong counter-attack and allowing Aimar to tap it in after a penalty box melee.
63min: If the goal descriptions are missing, please hit F5. After playing so well since the break, United have another brainstorm, letting Benfica get behind the two central midfielders, spinning it wide and causing confusion in the box. United have just had the ball in the net but were offside from Valencia's cutback.
65min: Nani has a penalty shout. "Never a penalty," says Steve McClaren as the winger goes down when half-pushed by Garay. "Very pleased to see your reference to Javier Saviola's Championship Manager heydays," writes Kayleigh Martin. "My brother always used to buy him as an unknown 17-year-old and watch his squad flourish. I on the other hand, used to pick my signings based on the names that my 13-year-old self found hilarious. Stern John was a particular favourite."
67min: United corner when Valencia went round Bruno Cesar who block-tackled him when he turned to cut inside. Gaitan, Benfica's best player, is going off for the former Chelsea player Matic before United take the corner.
69min: Valencia can't clear the first group of defenders when he eventually takes the corner, the ball comes back to Fabio who wins a throw in but his control of the ball was poor. Got away with it. "Nothing wrong with being obsessed with the suave assassin Berbatov, Rob!" writes Ryan Dunne. "I still find it hard to believe that he doesn't play for Romania (and so Translyvania) ; one can just picture Berbatov, Count von Count style, chillin' in a P.I.M.P. cape." You youngsters and your P.I.M.P. references.
71min: Rodrigo asks for a penalty when Ferdiannd challenges the centre-forward to win a header. The Benfica player reckons he was pushed but it didn't look that way. Hernandez is warming up.
73min: Fabio's not having a happy game, letting Witsel get around him on the oustide and crossing for Aimar who rushed his shot and blasts it over the bar.
75min: Left-foot shot from Fletcher after Jones does one of his forward charges, smashing it over from the 18-yard line. "That Fabio. He's rubbish, isn't he?" opines Richard Peel. He's the Ray Wallace of these twins, Richard.
77min: Valencia, Fabio's partner up the right, has been a real threat since half-time and again goes around his man to win a corner. This one's taken by Nani, left-footed, but it's as woeful as most corners are these days. Here's Brendan Murphy, or Murphy Brendan, with some harsh judgments: "United have been coasting along without a decent central midfield since Roy Keane left. Ferguson has no idea about central midfield, he never has had. Carrick probably wouldn't get in any other top four squad - he's a Villa or Newcastle quality player. Fletcher's OK but instead of splashing money on the likes of Young, Ferguson should have gone for Mereiles, or even Adam - possibly both." Well, seeing Carrick's just got booked, he won't play in the last group game. On your other point … Ince, Keane, Scholes. Hmm. I don't think Adam would fit into this side.
79min: On Carrick. Xabi Alonso's a fan, reckons he should be in England's midfield. Oh dear Berba. Spoons a shot over the bar when the ball was dragged back to meet his run into the box. It was quite a heavy pass but he has the capability to score chances like that.
80min: Hernandez comes on for Valencia.
81min: Evra hits a low cross into the box towards Berbatov but it's cleared and though Young is fouled as he tries to win the second ball, the referee doesn't give it. Fabio goes off and Smalling comes on. Otelul Galati have scored twice in six minutes to make it 2-3 v Basel. This group's alive. "Mick Co-op," writes Jeremy Millar. "His surname was hyphenated back then." I used to be convinced that I invented that joke back in 1976.
83min: Aimar's gone off to be replaced by Amorim. United have a free-kick when Maxi Pereira crunches into Young about 35 yards out on the left. Young's cross loops out to Smalling but Benfica get rid of it comfortably.
85min: Fletcher switches the ball to the right out to Jones who passes to Carrick who sprays a pass out to Evra on the left. He cuts it back, beyond the far post where Nani dinks it in but Hernandez is offside.
88min: De Gea's rushed clearance from Smalling's ill-judged backpass is won by a Benfica player on the left touchline and he nods it to Rodrigo who races towards the box and unleashes a firm shot, fortunately, for United, off target.
90min: Three minutes have been added on, Nani beginning them with a deep cross that is headed out by Luisao and after a couple of United thwarted thrusts Smalling messes up with a heavy pass and Benfica have a goalkick.
90min+2: "The empty red seats are a disgrace," says an irate Fraser Thomas. The traffic-conscious fans are a weird breed. Hernandez gets the ball on the right after Ferdinand hits a 40-yard crossfield pass. His cross is almost met by Berbatov but it goes out for a corner off Pereira's head. The corner, as usual, does not find a target. And that's full time.
Full time: United's third draw means Benfica are through. They'll need to beat Basle and hope Otelul Galati can get something in Lisbon to have a chance of topping the group. If they lose in Basle, it's curtains. Strange performance all-round. Very good indeed for the middle 40 minutes but a lack of discipline and concentration defensively was evident either side of that passage. Benfica did very well in those periods to occupy the space between Fletcher and Carrick and the back four, picking holes behind either full-back. All in all an enjoyable game but United's failure to hold it at 2-1 after working so intelligently and industriously to earn their lead must infuriate their fans. Thanks for all your emails. Good night.
