Manchester United are almost certain of a place in the quarter-finals of the Champions League this evening after they drew 1-1 at Panathinaikos. However, they left it very late to score the equaliser after Giorgios Seitaridis put the Greek side into the lead after 24 minutes with a cracking shot from just outside the box that beat Fabien Barthez in the United goalmouth. Just as it looked like United would have to wait until the final round of matches to secure a spot in the knock-out stages of the competition for the fifth consecutive year, up stepped Paul Scholes two minutes into injury time to save the day for the Red Devils.
It was more than United deserved for their efforts as they were very much second best to the Greek side for the whole of this tie. Although a defeat would not have been tragic for Alex Ferguson's side - they would only have required a point from their final group match - they were still relieved to have got something from this encounter. Now they will only have to ensure they don't lose by more than two clear goals to reach the last eight of the competition.
Panathinaikos' goal arrived after United failed to clear a free-kick conceded by Mickael Silvestre on the right and Giorgios Seitaridis lashed the ball into the far corner from 20 yards out. Although the Greek side had numerous opportunities to kill off the tie, Fabien Barthez was magnificent in the United goal to keep his side in contention right up to the dying minutes. Although Ferguson must have thought his team little chance of taking anything from the game, Scholes once again came to the rescue. A shot from Luke Chadwick had been blocked and Scholes turned on the loose ball to fire home with his left-foot and bring a smile back to his manager's face.
Filed by Amanda Fennelly
