Roma 0 - Man U 2

Manchester United won 2-0 at the Stadio Olimpico thanks to goals before and after the break by Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney. The Red Devils take a vital 2-goal lead into the 2nd leg, to be played on Wednesday, 9th April 2008 at Old Trafford. The semi-final beckons, and with it another crack at history.

Cristiano Ronaldo scoring an away goal in a crucial game for Manchester United - showing a resolve that seemed missing in seasons gone past.

Wayne Rooney’s all-round performance, easily the man of the match for his work-rate, creativity and commitment. Ronaldo stole the show with his goal but the rest of the game was more about Rooney.

"I should have put Wayne Rooney through the middle quicker. We maybe had some lucky breaks in the second half, they could have scored a couple when they went through on the left hand side against us." Sir Alex Ferguson

"It was a very good team we were playing against," he said. "I think we had to defend really well at times. It was a good disciplined performance, we had good possession of the ball and that's not easy in that atmosphere.

Vidic’s injury - a knee strain as he landed awkwardly after jumping for a header - will be a cause of concern but hopefully it’s not a long-term injury like last season.

Roma’s wastefulness in front of goal - granted, by the end of the game both teams had their fair share of chances but there were periods of time before both goals that Roma had clear-cut chances to score, and they bottled it. For United to grab those crucial away goals in difficult games - at Lyon and now here at Rome - is a good sign of maturity from their players.