Ferguson thankful for Saha strike

For Sir Alex Ferguson, there was a sense of relief more than anything after Louis Saha scored the only goal at SL Benfica to exorcise the demons of a disappointing exit from the UEFA Champions League at the Estádio da Luz last season and move the English club clear at the Group F summit. The Scot's opposite number Fernando Santos knows he must now pick his players up for the vital matches against Celtic FC, 1-0 winners against FC København on Matchday 2.

Fernando Santos, Benfica coach
We're disappointed by the result because we played well, especially in the first half when we pushed United back and forced them to defend in their area. But they defended well and waited for us to make a mistake. We tried to play the same way after the break, but we conceded an unfortunate goal on the counterattack which deflected in off Anderson's leg. We failed to react as we should have to that, and played more with our hearts and less with our heads. We had chances to score but so did they, although I don't think we deserved to lose. The games against Celtic will now be decisive and we have to win both of them to qualify because United are well on their way to winning the group.

Sir Alex Ferguson, Manchester United manager
I think it was a good performance. We showed good pace in our game. We defended well and there were other good things. In the second half I thought we improved tremendously. Hopefully it gives the players the confidence to trust each other you need in these games. I thought [Cristiano] Ronaldo played very well in front of a hostile crowd and Saha scored a great goal following a counterattacking move which we've been working on. Benfica and København now have to get points on the board quickly so we must do our job against the Danish side to ensure we qualify. It was good for us to win here after what happened last season. We were out after that, but this is just the second game.