Ronaldo carefully places his spot-kick into the top right-hand corner of the frame behind the goal and United return to Old Trafford with a draw. The return leg will be another squeaky affair but with the Premiership in the balance, Ferguson won’t be free to tinker this weekend. Here’s my notes on another night in Europe…

Ferguson covered for the loss of Vidic by shifting Brown alongside Ferdinand and drafting in Hargreaves at right-back. That meant a starts for Tevez and Park further up the park. Not much further though, Tevez was pulled back into midfield for long periods, while Rooney was employed out on the right, with Ronaldo pushing up as the chief threat to the Barca goal. In truth, United never gambled on pushing numbers forward as they attempted to strangle the game in midfield. They got their draw – although it easily could have been more had Ronaldo not spooned the early penalty.

With the tie delicately poised, Ferguson would normally look to rest a few at the weekend in preparation but, given the opposition and circumstances of the clash with Chelsea, that is very unlikely. Vidic remains a major doubt for the game with the stomach infection that saw him rushed to hospital on Tuesday.

“I don’t think he’ll be ready for Saturday – that’s the situation,” remarked Ferguson after last night’s game.

That’s likely to see Brown again employed at centre-back, although Pique is an option. Hargreaves could well continue at right-back although I can see him pushed into the midfield with O’Shea drafted in. I’d also expect a similar ploy to the Barcelona game against Chelsea – Tevez could well be benched with Hargreaves providing the extra protection in midfield. Anderson and Giggs could also figure.