Third title in sight for unbeaten United

Irrepressible Ronaldo 
The 2007/08 season was always going to carry a particular emotional resonance, coming half a century after the loss of eight of manager Sir Matt Busby's 'Babes' in the Munich air disaster, and the current United side have honoured their memory with some outstanding European displays. The irrepressible Ronaldo signalled both his and the club's intentions by scoring the winner in the opening group match away to his former team Sporting Clube de Portugal, and four more clinical victories soon followed.

Late free-kick
The Portuguese winger found the net three more times in back-to-back wins over FC Dynamo Kyiv then proved the thorn in Sporting's side again with a late free-kick at Old Trafford. "Cristiano was only 18 when he started playing European football. Now he's maturing, he does what we expect him to do," said Sir Alex. Only a 1-1 draw at AS Roma prevented United from finishing Group F with a 100 per cent record, although they would erase that minor blip by eliminating Luciano Spalletti's men in the quarter-finals.

Roma repeat
United's opponents in the first knockout round, Olympique Lyonnais, came within three minutes of inflicting a first defeat on the English champions only for Carlos Tévez to salvage a 1-1 draw at the Stade de Gerland and Ronaldo to finish the job off in the second leg with another decisive strike. The 23-year-old was in unstoppable form for much of the campaign, moving clear at the top of the UEFA Champions League scoring charts by registering his seventh goal in the quarter-final first leg Roma, as further strikes from Wayne Rooney in Italy and Tévez at Old Trafford ensured the same outcome as 12 months previously.

Magnificent goal
United fans were hoping that similarities with 2006/07 would end there, but must have feared a repeat of the AC Milan defeat a year earlier when Ronaldo missed a penalty three minutes into their semi-final with FC Barcelona in the Camp Nou. However, unlike at San Siro the visitors' defence – expertly marshalled by Rio Ferdinand – stood firm and United claimed a goalless draw. That game may have lacked the fireworks of United's visit to the city nine years earlier, when Ole Gunnar Solskjær's last-gasp goal against FC Bayern München clinched the UEFA Champions League trophy, yet the result may prove every bit as vital after Paul Scholes' magnificent goal 14 minutes into the second leg at Old Trafford carried Sir Alex's side into the final again.