Why Sir Alex Ferguson betrayed his Manchester United rule and hated one of Paul Scholes' finest moments
Manchester United and Barcelona were complimentary to each other before meeting in the Champions League in 2007/08.
The highly anticipated semi-final tie was a meeting of European giants and there was deep respect on both sides.
Barcelona manager Frank Rijkaard described Sir Alex Ferguson as 'the embodiment of football' ahead of the first leg and Lionel Messi, who was set to face Cristiano Ronaldo for the first time, played down a blossoming rivalry.
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Barcelona's side included greats such as Messi, Ronaldinho, Xavi, Deco, Andres Iniesta, Carles Puyol and Thierry Henry, and it would have been foolish not to respect the Catalan club, but Ferguson was bullish about United's chances.
In the build-up to the meeting, Ferguson said it was probably the best United squad 'in terms of completeness' he'd had under his command since taking over at Old Trafford in 1986, a statement which made journalists sit up.
"You need maximum concentration. Anything can happen," said Ronaldo ahead of the first leg on April 22, 2008, away from home. "Messi is a very good player. It is a pleasure to play with players like him. We seem similar – we always want to score.
"Our objective is to win as quickly as possible. We will play to find the best result in the Nou Camp."
Barcelona were formidable opposition, especially at the Nou Camp. Ferguson knew his team couldn't make any early mistakes in the game, but it was the hosts who would commit the first error of the tie after just two minutes.
Gabriel Milito threw his hands up to block a Ronaldo header in the box in only the second minute of the match and the referee immediately gave a penalty, which was only ever going to be taken
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