25 years ago: Bayern's first visit to Old Trafford

To qualify for the knockout stages, United must beat Bayern and hope the other group match between Copenhagen and Galatasaray finishes level.

Bayern have 13 points and have already been confirmed as winners of the group, while Copenhagen and Galatasaray are tied on five points in second and third respectively, with the former having a slight goal-difference advantage. United are a point further back.

Our exclusive digital collectible to mark Tuesday’s game is now live – grow your Champions League collection by claiming it at collectibles.manutd.com, or see below for more information.

This week’s encounter with Bayern comes almost 25 years to the day after our first-ever competitive meeting at Old Trafford with the Bundesliga club.

That evening, 9 December 1998, Alex Ferguson's United crept into the quarter-finals of a competition we would famously go on to win, by virtue of a curious draw in the final group game.

It had yielded only two wins over Brondby, while leads had been squandered against Barcelona twice, plus Bayern in Bavaria, but the Reds’ attacking instincts had captured the imagination of many onlookers and peers around European football.

Prophetically, Bayern poster boy Stefan Effenberg opined ahead of the game: “The best thing would be if both of us went through, then we could meet in the final.”

And so it transpired, ending up a strange 1-1 draw in which the final stages were played at a pedestrian pace when it became clear that both sides were in line to qualify; Bayern as group winners, United as the competition's second-best runners-up behind Real Madrid. 

Hasan Salihamidzic cancelled out Roy Keane’s opener and prompted a jittery air inside Old Trafford, but the news that Lens and Galatasaray were losing midway through the second period was quickly passed from the away dugout to those in the home equivalent, and both United and Bayern recognised that there was little to gain but much to lose from attempts to force the issue at Old Trafford.

"The Munich players were coming up to my team and telling them just to keep the ball in the final few minutes," revealed Ferguson. "In fact, I was aware 10 minutes before the end that as things stood we were through. It was the Germans who were telling us. They always have very good lines of communication. They never got things like that wrong."

MATCH DETAILS

Wednesday 9 December 1998 | Champions League Group D | Attendance: 54,434

Manchester United 1 (Keane 43)
Bayern Munich 1 (Salihamidzic 56)

United: Schmeichel, Brown, G. Neville, Stam, Irwin (Johnsen 46), Beckham, Keane, Scholes, Giggs, Yorke (Butt 64), Cole. 
Subs not used: van der Gouw, Sheringham, P. Neville, Blomqvist, Berg. 

Bayern: Kahn, Matthaus (Linke 61), Babbel, Kuffour, Strunz, Jeremies, Effenberg, Lizarazu, Salihamidzic, Elber (Jancker 81), Zickler (Basler 81). 
Subs not used: Scheur, Tarnat, Helmer.
Booked: Lizarazu

Man of the Match: Jaap Stam was at his unflappable best, coping with Bayern’s assorted attributes of pace, power and trickery, and looking every inch a rock at the heart of the Reds’ back line. 

COLLECT UNITED: BAYERN MUNICH

Get your free United vs Bayern collectible – unique artwork that unlocks benefits. Just click the image below or head straight to collectibles.manutd.com and follow these steps:

1. SIGN IN TO THE COLLECTIBLES WEBSITE

After visiting collectibles.manutd.com, click Sign In, Use Social and finally your choice of Google, Facebook or X (formerly Twitter) account.

2. CREATE YOUR FREE DIGITAL WALLET

Signing in with your chosen social account will create an online wallet where you can store all the matchday tokens you claim throughout 2023/24. How many will you have by the end of the season? Why not challenge your friends and see who can build the biggest collection.

3. COLLECT NOW

Click this button on the collectibles.manutd.com homepage to find the latest token, and again on the next page to unlock and add it to your digital wallet. Then you're done! But remember, you won't be able to add the Bayern one after full-time, so please click 'Collect Now' before 22:00 GMT.

TERMS & CONDITIONS

Manchester United’s officially licensed Digital Collectibles, powered by Tezos and brought to you by Tezos ecosystem companies, are a form of cryptoasset. Manchester United Digital Collectibles have been issued as a collectible item and not an investment. However, it is important that you keep in mind that: 

1. Manchester United Digital Collectibles are not currently regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority in the UK and are not covered by the Financial Ombudsman Service or the Financial Services Compensation Scheme;  

2. the value of Manchester United Digital Collectibles is variable and can go down as well as up; 

3. tax may be payable on any profits made on the sale of Manchester United Digital Collectibles; and

4. for those Digital Collectibles which require purchase, the decision to purchase Manchester United Digital Collectibles requires careful thought and consideration. You should seek independent financial advice if you are in doubt. You should not purchase any cryptoassets if you do not fully understand the nature of your purchase and the risks involved.