Report: BENFICA-0 vs MUFC-1

Louis Saha's superb strike, aided by a slight deflection, made sure a hot-and-cold Reds display yielded three points and gave Sir Alex Ferguson's side further breathing space at the top of Group F.

Last December United exited European competition with a whimper, beaten 2-1 at the Estadio Da Luz and dumped to the bottom of what had seemed an easily navigable group.

The ghosts of that night have been laid to rest to some degree, with Sir Alex true to his pre-match word that there would be a different outcome this time.

There were periods, however, when it was easy to doubt his prediction. There's no denying that United were fortunate to be level at the interval.

In a poor first 45, the Reds' only clear-cut chance fell to Saha, who was brilliantly thwarted by Luisao as he charged in to convert the rebound from Ronaldo's spilled shot.

That was after 13 minutes, by which point Michael Carrick and Paul Scholes had already been booked for needless, clumsy challenges.

Team Line-ups

Benfica: Quim, Alcides, Luisao, Anderson (Mantorras 82), Leo, Petit, Katsouranis, Karagounis (Nuno Assis 62), Paulo Jorge (Miccoli 65), Nuno Gomes, Simao.
Subs Not Used: Moretto, Beto, Nelson, Ricardo Rocha.

United: Van der Sar, Neville, Ferdinand, Vidic, Heinze, Ronaldo, Carrick, O'Shea, Scholes, Rooney (Fletcher 86), Saha (Smith 85).
Subs Not Used: Kuszczak, Evra, Brown, Solskjaer, Richardson.

Goalscorer: Saha 60.

Tag:Saha,Manchester United,Sir Alex Fuerguson,Benfica FC,Champion League,