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Manchester United will be hoping to take their Premier League form into Europe tonight when they travel to Benfica.
The Red Devils travel to Portugal for their opening Champions Leagye match after four wins from four games domestically.
Sir Alex Ferguson’s men have been in fine form too, with an 8-2 win over Arsenal and most recently a 5-0 victory at Bolton helping them to 18 goals in four games.
Should they continue their high level of performance against Benfica, it could be another goal fest, led by man of the moment Wayne Rooney.
The England striker has hit successive hat-tricks in the Premier League and is probably the most feared attacking player in world football right now.
Ferguson has already compared him to Brazilian legend Pele, so it is fair to say that Rooney is enjoying his football right now.
As for Benfica, they have started their domestic season well too with three wins and a draw so far. They currently sit 2nd in the Liga Sagres table with a 2-1 home victory over Guimaraes their most recent encounter.
Facing Manchester United is a different challenge all together though and they know they will need to raise their game.
It is probably the biggest game of their season to host the Old Trafford club and their fans will be in fine voice to encourage their team towards a positive result.
Team news wise, Rio Ferdinand has been left at home for United as he is rested ahead of this weekend’s clash with Chelsea.
Fellow central defender Nemanja Vidic is also missing, so Jonny Evans and Phil Jones will start at the back for the visitors.
Elsewhere, their could be starts for Ryan Giggs and Michael Carrick, while Park Ji-sung and Dimitar Berbatov will hope to be involved at some stage too.
Match odds
Unsurprisingly, Manchester United are comfortable favourites to pick up three points in this one with Bet365 offering odds of 2.00 (1/1) for an away win.
Better value might be found elsewhere on this one and for Benfica to hold United to a draw can be backed at 3.50 (5/2) with BetFred.
If you really want to back the underdog – an option which shouldn’t be dismissed considering Benfica’s home form – a victory for the Portuguese side tonight is available at 4.00 (3/1).
Correct score
If like many people you are convinced that United are the only potential winners in this one, it is worth looking at the correct score market.
Do you fancy the Premier League Champions to win comfortably or to scrape by? 1-0 to the away side is avaliable at 7.50 (13/2) with Bet365, while a more convincing 5-0 win is available at 126.00 (125/1) with VC Bet.
Away from a United win, a 2-2 draw is probably your best bet and this can be backed at odds of 11.00 (10/1).
First goalscorer
No prizes for guessing who is leading the way in this market. Rooney can be backed at 5.00 (4/1) for the first goal on the night, closely followed by partner in crime Javier Hernandez at 6.00 (5/1) with SkyBet.
Oscar Cardozo is Benfica’s best chance of striking first, while if you fancy more of an outside bet, heading to Bet365 and lumping on Ashley Young at 11.00 (10/1) might be the way to go.
Recommended bets
Benfica to snatch a 2-2 draw @ 11.00 (10/1)
Ashley Young to score the first goal @ 11.00 (10/1)
