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By Jonathan Stevenson

2204: I think it might be Champions League bedtime. After an evening of high drama that began with Wayne Rooney's statement of intent and finished with Gareth Bale's brilliant hat-trick, it's time for me to bid thee farewell. Mr Sam Lyon will be here on Thursday for the Europa League and I'll see you again on Saturday. Be good now.

Inter Milan 4-3 Tottenham:
Saj Chowdhury reports: "Sensational."
Thanks Saj. I'll read your report instead.

From kevcantona on 606: "You know, one of the North Korean team from 1966 said that when Eusebio grabbed the ball out of the net having pulled it back to 3-1 in that World Cup quarter-final, it unsettled them and raised the Portugal team's game big time. Professionalism might be turning players into robots but there's still room for both mental boosts and collapses here and there."

From JamesDuffin1 on Twitter: "Never seen a man as upset as Bale after scoring a Champ League hat-trick. Shows how much the game still means to some players."

2152: Champions League scores:
Barcelona 2-0 FC Copenhagen
FC Twente 1-1 Werder Bremen
Inter Milan 4-3 Tottenham
Lyon 2-0 Benfica
Man Utd 1-0 Bursaspor
Panathinaikos 0-0 Rubin Kazan
Rangers 1-1 Valencia
Schalke 04 3-1 Hapoel Tel-Aviv

From Leon, Wales, via text: "Re: 2053 - and we saw why Bale ran to get the ball out the net! Some people are born winners and never give up... some do."

Man United boss Sir Alex Ferguson: "I haven't read Wayne Rooney's statement, but we'll have a view on it tomorrow and probably put it to bed tomorrow. As I said, the door is open. We keep good players, particularly when they are that young. He wants assurances? Have I won 30 trophies or what?!"

Man United boss Sir Alex Ferguson: "It's important to win for the fans, they were good tonight and got behind the team. There was a good unity in the team."

Man United boss Sir Alex Ferguson: "We could have pushed on better, but we kept the intensity of our game right and controlled the match. The players worked hard but we could have done better in the final third. I didn't think they could possibly have scored."

2143: Couple of late goals to tell you about that got lost in Gareth Bale's brilliant hat-trick - Itay Shechter pulled one back for Hapoel, but they still lost 3-1 at Schalke, while Lionel Messi scored his second as Barcelona wrapped up a 2-0 win over FC Copenhagen.

Tottenham's Gareth Bale: "We were sloppy in the first half, we're not really sure what happened. There wasn't too much to think about with the goals, we just wanted to get back into the game. There are a lot of positives to take from the second half, we kept the ball well. But we're massively disappointed to have lost the game."

BBC Radio 5 live's Mark Lawrenson on Gareth Bale: "He's quick, but he's also got a brilliant change of pace and no-one could get near him tonight - Maicon, Zanetti, Cordoba, none of them could catch him. We're not trying to sell him, but he's almost selling himself with performances like tonight."

Manchester United 1-0 Bursaspor:
Howard Nurse reports: "Amid the mess that is the Wayne Rooney saga, manager Sir Alex Ferguson will take a slender win over Bursaspor. At least a moment of greatness from Nani won them the game. Hardly a classic though."

2135: Full-time Rangers 1-1 Valencia

2135: Full-time Manchester United 1-0 Bursaspor

2134: Full-time Inter Milan 4-3 Tottenham

Spurs goal: Who the hell writes these scripts? Spurs are just trying to get the ball on to Gareth Bale's awesome left foot, and it works - the Welshman has only gone and bagged a hat-trick. He is teed up 15 yards out, on the left of the area once more, and again he smacks it past Julio Cesar and into the far post. Dead eye.

2132: GOAL Inter Milan 4-3 Tottenham (Bale)

Spurs goal: At this rate, Massimo Moratti will be bidding £45m for Gareth Bale - because that is an absolutely fantastic finish. He collects a pass 15 yards inside the Inter half, holds off Javier Zanetti and from just inside the area smashes another left-foot shot into the far corner. What a hit, son.

2131: GOAL Inter Milan 4-2 Tottenham (Bale)

2130: Nothing happening at all in Italy, where Inter still lead Tottenham 4-1. Safe to say Spurs would probably have taken that at half-time.

2129: Manchester United have a chance to put this one to bed as Nemanja Vidic's ball over the top finds Javier Hernandez, but the usually accurate Mexican slams his low shot from 15 yards wide of the far post.

From Floorless on Twitter: "Not fair, Spurs have a 12:45 kick off Saturday. Playing with 10 men as well tonight, Everton will be rubbing their hands!"

2126: GOAL FC Twente 1-1 Werder Bremen (Marko Arnautovic)

BBC Sport's Howard Nurse at Old Trafford: "Renewed pressure from Manchester United and almost a second goal. A few gasps around the stadium as the attendance is announced at just over 72,000."

2123: Oh, that's almost too cruel for the Ibrox faithful. Rangers carve Valencia open again and after Steven Naismith's shot is blocked it falls to Richard Foster at an angle on the right of the six-yard box, but he can only shoot over. It was a tight-ish angle, but an open goal. Should've scored.

2122: About 10 minutes left plus stoppages. What have we got left?

From Nav, west Mids, via text: "Ronaldo leaving was a huge blow & Rooney leaving could be fatal. The lack of creativity in the United squad is all too evident & the onus will be left with Berbatov, who to be frank blows hot & cold like our weather. A lot more cold than hot."

2119: Manchester United take Anderson off and send on Mexican striker Javier Hernandez for the last few minutes. Slender lead, they could do with another to make sure.

2118: GOAL FC Twente 1-0 Werder Bremen (Theo Janssen)

2117: It's gone very, very quiet around Europe. Scores as they stand in the three games we're concentrating on - Man Utd 1-0 Bursaspor, Rangers 1-1 Valencia and Inter 4-1 Spurs. At Ibrox, Steven Naismith mis-controls 10 yards out - if he'd brought the ball down, he'd have surely scored.

BBC Sport's Howard Nurse at Old Trafford: "Good reception for Park Ji-Sung as he was replaced by Gabriel Obertan - a player who hasn't been seen for weeks. Perhaps Sir Alex is keen to prove a point about some of his more recent recruits."

2113: Rangers have a free-kick on the right of the Valencia box and Sasa Papac isn't messing about - he runs up and smacks it with his left foot, sending the ball a yard over the bar with Cesar Sanchez well beaten. Rangers deserve to find a winner at Ibrox.

2112: Manchester United bring Gabriel Obertan on for Park Ji-Sung. Moments later, Nani curls a shot from 18 yards into the arms of the Bursaspor goalkeeper.

From Spoony on 606: "Rangers are playing some great football. I'm really in shock they're capable of outplaying one of the most in form teams in Spain. Should have had a couple more goals."

2110: Robbie Keane comes on for Peter Crouch at the San Siro - remember, Keane used to play for Inter having signed for the Italian giants as a 19-year-old.

2109: GOAL Schalke 3-0 Hapoel Tel-Aviv (Jose Manuel Jurado)

BBC Sport's Howard Nurse at Old Trafford: "Patrice Evra is fit to continue after receiving treatment for a knock. Might be time for United to bring on Berbatov or Hernandez to add a bit of gravitas to their forward line."

2106: Rangers nearly take the lead again at Ibrox, Steven Davis producing a sublime chip from the edge of the Valencia box that forces Cesar Sanchez to backpedal and tip over. Impudent.

2104: Coutinho, Coutinho. He's 18 years old, Brazilian, and he's got the world at his feet. The Inter starlet jinks one way and another on the edge of the Spurs box again before rolling a right-foot shot just wide. He's got talent and some.

2103: Inter Milan send on Goran Pandev for Cristian Chivu. About half an hour to go in tonight's Champions League games.

2101: It's really quiet at Old Trafford, Man United are struggling to create anything like a clear-cut chance and Old Trafford sounds almost eerily quiet. Patrice Evra's slightly mis-hit cross from the left is going in, but Bursaspor keeper Dimitar Ivankov claims at the near post.

2100: GOAL Schalke 2-0 Hapoel Tel-Aviv (Raul)
Raul levels Gerd Muller's all-time European goalscoring record

From jamesacresswell on Twitter: "It takes some skill to run that far and still be able to control your shot in the way that Bale did! What a goal!"

2057: GOAL Lyon 2-0 Benfica (Lisandro Lopez)

BBC Sport's Howard Nurse at Old Trafford: "Subdued start to the second half at Old Trafford. United fans trying to encourage the team to generate more going forward. Any lead has been a difficult lead for United to hold on to of late."

Spurs goal: Brilliant, brilliant. Gareth Bale shows his top quality to an Italian audience by collecting a pass just over halfway and running at pace at the Inter defence, seeing off Javier Zanetti and a sliding Walter Samuel to arrow a left-foot shot into the far corner all along the floor from 18 yards. Cracking goal, but not sure he should be racing to get the ball out of the net.

2053: GOAL Inter Milan 4-1 Tottenham (Bale)

From THFC_Jake on 606: "This is no excuse and we would lose anyway, but in fairness to us we are missing our best striker, best midfielder and three best centre-halves."

2050: Good chance for Valencia moments after Kenny Miller has a shot blocked at the other end - a looping cross to the far post is laid off into the path of Juan Mata, but he balloons his effort miles over.

Valencia goal: Now that's what you call a half-time teamtalk, though the goal is largely of Rangers' making. A Valencia free-kick within 45 seconds of the restart is pumped into the box and Maurice Edu, who had a blinding first half, heads into his own net. They don't deserve that, Rangers.

2047: GOAL Rangers 1-1 Valencia (Edu og)

2046: Bursaspor make two changes at the break, with Ibrahim Ozturk and Turgay Bahadir both on. They are under way at Old Trafford, Ibrox and San Siro.

2045: Tottenham are facing a record-breaking night - three times in the past, English teams have lost by four goals in the Champions League - Barcelona 4-0 Leeds United in 2000, Barcelona 5-1 Chelsea in 2000 and Barcelona 4-0 Manchester United in 1994. No English team has ever lost by five goals, Infostrada Sports tell us.

Champions League Macca: "It's been semi-quiet elsewhere in Europe this evening. Barcelona hold a slender lead at home to FC Copenhagen through Lionel Messi. The Danes lead their domestic league by 16 points but a trip to the Camp Nou is un poco differente, no? Schalke are also 1-0 up at home to Hapoel through Raul's 67th goal - he's one short of Gerd Muller's all-time record. If only we had some sort of blog about him. Lyon lead Benfica by a single goal and the visiting Portuguese are down to 10 men."

2040: I know the live football is our priority, but if you are just joining us, a reminder of the main story of the day: Wayne Rooney has accused Manchester United of lacking ambition and says he will be leaving the Old Trafford club.

From Simon, Edinburgh, via text: "Massively proud to be a Rangers fan tonight, what a performance so far!"

Inter Milan 4-0 Tottenham:
Saj Chowdhury reports: "You have to feel for the Spurs fans - their expectations ripped up, soaked in water and made into a pulp by brilliant Inter inside 14 minutes."

Manchester United 1-0 Bursaspor:
Howard Nurse reports: "One moment of sparkling magic from Nani gives Manchester United a deserved interval lead. Sir Alex will be hoping for a bit more creativity from the rest of his team in the second period."

2032: Half-time Rangers 1-0 Valencia

2032: Half-time Manchester United 1-0 Bursaspor

2031: Half-time Inter Milan 4-0 Tottenham

2031: This Coutinho looks like one hell of a player. He twists so quickly he falls over inside the Spurs area, but gets back up in the blink of an eye and pokes into the side-netting.

2030: SENDING OFF Nicolas Gaitan (Benfica)

2028: Inter are running riot - Tottenham cannot even get close to containing them. Another quickfire move down the left ends with a cross to the far post and after Maicon's first shot is blocked by Carlo Cudicini, his super second brings a stunning one-handed save from the Spurs stopper.

2026: Wow, Rangers look like a cracking team tonight. The ball falls nicely for Maurice Edu 22 yards out and his right-foot screamer slams against Cesar Sanchez's left-hand post, before Kenny Miller blazes the rebound over.

2024: The handbags are out at Old Trafford, but it's all a bit silly. Nani is caught in possession by Ozan Ipek and he seems to kick out a little at the Bursaspor midfielder, then pushing him too - Ipek responds by putting his hands on Nani's neck and referee Gianluca Rocchi books the pair of them.

From Imran5x on Twitter: "Benitez's Inter are way more fun to watch compared to Mourinho's. Only time will tell if they are as effective."

BBC Sport's Howard Nurse at Old Trafford: "Bizarre: the Bursaspor fans are chanting Queen's "We Will Rock You" in Turkish. Still sounds good though."

Inter goal: Bad to worse for Harry Redknapp's boys in Italy. Coutinho plays a no-look pass to Samuel Eto'o inside the Spurs box to the left and he gets in front of William Gallas to poke under the body of Carlo Cudicini - it hits the Italian's right boot and flies into the net. Inter are rampant.

2020: GOAL Inter Milan 4-0 Tottenham (Eto'o)

Rangers goal: It's been coming - don't think they don't deserve it, because they massively do. Vladimir Weiss swings over a corner from the left and up gets Maurice Edu - it's a prodigious leap that takes him above Cesar Sanchez and enables him to nod into the empty net. Advantage hosts.

2018: GOAL Rangers 1-0 Valencia (Edu)

2017: Nice tee-up at Manchester United as Nani's ball from the right finds Darren Fletcher and he lays it off for Michael Carrick, but the England midfielder balloons his shot miles over.

From faranjiniho on 606: "A little worried about Bursapour on the counter, Rafael and Evra are playing very high, makes for some good football, but risky."

2014: Nemanja Vidic has a decent chance to double United's lead, but he heads wide from a corner. Moments later Bursaspor break quickly and Rafael has to be sharp to get back and deny Volkan Sen as he raced through.

2012: What an opening for Tottenham that is. Aaron Lennon goes this a-way and that a-way down the Spurs right and curls over a head-me-in cross to the back stick for Peter Crouch - but the giant striker gets underneath it and his header flies miles over Julio Cesar's crossbar. He might not get many more tonight.

2010: Promising move from Bursaspor as Sercan Yildirim gets in down the left, but his final ball is lacking quality and it's cleared by the United defence. At Rangers, Kenny Miller beats the Valencia offside trap but delays too long and Cesar Sanchez once more races off his line to thwart the hosts.

Robbie, Sedgefield, via text: "Hang on, shouldn't Inter be desperately defending to keep 1-0 lead? Hope this shuts up some lazy journalists."

2008: GOAL Lyon 1-0 Benfica (Briand)

2007: GOAL Barcelona 1-0 FC Copenhagen (Messi, of course)

2005: It's all Rangers at Ibrox - they could've scored three in three minutes. Sasa Papac's left-foot drive from 20 yards forces another fine save from Cesar Sanchez. Meanwhile, Infostrada Sports tell us Javier Zanetti, at 37 years and 71 days, has become the oldest goalscorer in Champions League history.

BBC Sport's Howard Nurse at Old Trafford: "Cracking solo goal from Nani. Great player when he's on song, if only he could be more consistent - he'd be the next Cristiano Ronaldo if he could do that on a regular basis."

2002: Chance for Rangers, and it's a good one. Kenny Miller swings a clever cross into the Valencia box and Steven Naismith is in behind the defence, but Cesar Sanchez races off his line and spreads himself and the striker's shot is saved. Moments later Miller sees a header at the back stick blocked by the increasingly busy Sanchez.

Inter goal: My word, this is an annihilation right now. Inter put together another gorgeous move - if this was Barca, everyone would be raving, so I'm going to. Maicon finds Dejan Stankovic on the edge of the Spurs box, he plays a brilliant one-two with Samuel Eto'o and the midfielder shoots low into the bottom right-hand corner of Carlo Cudicini's net. He's been on for four minutes and conceded two already.

1959: GOAL Inter Milan 3-0 Tottenham (Stankovic)

1958: GOAL Schalke 1-0 Hapoel Tel-Aviv (Raul)

Inter goal: That's how to take a penalty - the goal-crazy Samuel Eto'o steps up and slams it into the right-hand corner of Carlo Cudicini's net - it didn't matter that the keeper went the right way. Spurs are in some trouble here against the holders.

1956: GOAL Inter Milan 2-0 Tottenham (Eto'o)

1955: Mayhem at the San Siro. Jonathan Biabiny is played in by Wesley Sneijder, he gets to the ball before Heurelho Gomes, nicks it past the keeper and is taken out inside the penalty area. The referee has little choice but to send him off, Luka Modric is subbed for Carlo Cudicini and Inter have a penalty to try to double their lead...

Man Utd goal: They ain't talking about Wayne Rooney anymore at OT (but they might again at half-time). Nani turns, runs towards goal and curls in a 22-yard shot to put the hosts ahead in some style. That's a lovely goal from the Portuguese.

1953: SENDING OFF Heurelho Gomes (Tottenham)

1953: PENALTY TO INTER MILAN

1952: GOAL Manchester United 1-0 Bursaspor (Nani)

From BelgoFoot on Twitter: "Rooney situation reminds me of Best, early seventies: Law and Charlton 'gone', one world class player left... no trophies for 20-odd years."

1949: First glimpse of a chance at Old Trafford as Federico Macheda is played into some space on the left of the Bursaspor area, but his cross-shot is blocked by the Turkish team's keeper Dimitar Ivankov.

Inter goal: You know when you go away from home in Europe and try to keep it tight... Spurs are carved open in the first minute as a lovely Inter move gets them in front - Javier Zanetti starts it, Coutinho finds Samuel Eto'o, he plays it back to Zanetti on the left of the area and his lovely shot curls into the far corner. Stunning.

1946: GOAL Inter Milan 1-0 Tottenham (Zanetti)

1945: Fergie goes and signs some autographs and we are under way in Manchester United v Bursaspor, Rangers v Valencia and Inter Milan v Tottenham.

1943: The Champions League anthem blares out of the Manchester United sound system, and Wayne Rooney is nowhere to be seen. Can the Red Devils put the turmoil of the last two days behind them and beat Bursaspor? Sir Alex walks to his seat and there are cheers, but perhaps not as many as you might have expected for the gaffer.

BBC Sport's Howard Nurse at Old Trafford: "There must be 50 photographers near the Old Trafford dugouts waiting to take pictures of Sir Alex Ferguson (and Wayne Rooney, if he turns up)."

1940: In conjunction with some people who paid attention in maths class (Infostrada Sports, I'm looking at you), it's time to bring you the latest chances in percentage form (along with their Euro Club Index ranking) of our British boys in the Champions League tonight:
Inter Milan (#5) 67% v Tottenham (#17) 11%
Man United (#3) 89% v Bursaspor (#89) 2%
Rangers (#51) 24% v Valencia (#9) 48%

Valencia coach Unai Emery: "It's possible after the two games that one of us may be out of contention. Rangers are very strong in their domestic league and they will impose themselves on us."

From kingofkings83 on 606: "I don't think the Spurs defence will be able to handle Eto'o tonight, who's scoring goals for fun at the moment."

From dgainest on Twitter: "So you're telling me the two serious options are either Rooney + Ronaldo or Rooney + Tevez? Fascinating..."

Rangers assistant manager Ally McCoist on BBC Radio Scotland: "We will go with the same formation as we did in previous Champions League games and we hope that the two wide boys, Foster and Whittaker, will be pushing further forward than they did at Old Trafford, just as they did against Bursaspor. That was they key against them."

Tottenham's former Inter striker Robbie Keane: "I had a great time over there, I really enjoyed it. They are great people so it's something I can look back on, to go over there as a 19-year-old kid and play for one of the biggest clubs in the world, as one of the greatest times in my life and something I will never forget."

1929: Don't forget how much is going on tonight; it's not all about Wayne Rooney and Manchester United. Rangers take on Valencia at Ibrox and Andy Campbell is in the chair for all things Scotland v Spain Part II.

Former Guardian reporter and Manchester Evening News Sports Editor David Meek: "I have witnessed some spectacular exits at Old Trafford, such as David Beckham and Jaap Stam's but I've not seen anything like this. I have not witnessed such a crude way for a player to depart from a club. It seems totally ignorant, the way he's gone about this."

1926: Howard Nurse reports: "Sir Alex Ferguson makes five changes to the Man United side from the 2-2 draw against West Brom on Saturday. Tomasz Kuszak makes a rare start in goal and summer recruit Chris Smalling replaces Rio Ferdinand. Park Ji-Sung comes in on the left instead of Ryan Giggs, while Italian Federico Macheda leads the attack with Dimitar Berbatov and Javier Hernandez in reserve on the bench. Gary Neville is also fit and among the substitutes. Bursaspor include the dangerous Volkan Sen on the right side of midfield. Expect him to try to put United left-back Patrice Evra under pressure."

1924: Secondly, if you've got a question about the Football League burning a hole in your head, worry no more - you can ask a real BBC expert in the shape of Steve Claridge ahead of his first video blog, which will be filmed on Monday. That's enough warning, surely?

1922: If you'll humour me, I've got some business to attend to. Firstly, as part of the BBC's School Report project, I was asked how to summarise how these live pages work (yeah, everyone else was busy). They even called me an expert! So if you think you could do my job, have a look and realise you're almost certainly right.

From Piotr, via text: "Will no-one stick up for Wayne Rooney? Would you expect a Jack Nicholson in his prime to star in mediocre movies, just because he is well paid?"

Bursaspor coach Ertugrul Saglam: "United are going through a troubled time. There is no reason why we cannot return to Turkey with a surprise result."

1917: Saj Chowdhury reports: Tottenham winger Aaron Lennon comes in for the suspended Rafael van der Vaart, while midfielder Jermaine Jenas replaces Sandro. Sebastien Bassong partners William Gallas in the centre of defence and Peter Crouch is the lone man in attack. Inter Milan are without striker Diego Milito while striker Goran Pandev, defender Ivan Cordoba and midfielder Esteban Cambiasso only make the bench after recovering from their respective injuries. French youngster Jonathan Biabiany has been given the responsibility to support hot-shot Samuel Eto'o up front.

1914: I'm almost sickened with myself for doing this, but if anyone has been wondering how the great Raul has been getting on since leaving Real Madrid in the summer, some clown wrote a blog based on an interview with the Schalke striker. "I felt it would be an important experience to get to know a new country, a new culture and a new mentality," said Raul. There's more if you want it.

From mdriver11 on Twitter: "It really is a shame that a night of Champions League football is being overshadowed by a greedy footballer."

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson on his 2,000th game as a manager in professional football: "It feels like the 10,000th after this week!"

Champions League Macca: "There are five non-British-related ties this evening, but plenty of interest no doubt. Catalan giants Barcelona have left the un-giant-like Xavi on the bench for their game against surprise Group D leaders FC Copenhagen, while the pointless Panathinaikos (as in they have no points) take on Rubin Kazan. In Group B, Lyon will face a test of their 100% percent record when Benfica come to town and Raul's Schalke face Hapoel. The other game in Spurs's group sees winless FC Twente up against victory-free Werder Bremen. It's not all about Wayne."

From Jon, United season-ticket holder, via text: "As much as I detest the Glazers, to blame them over the petulance of a spoilt footballer is plain nonsense. In my view, Rooney is trying to soften the blow to us fans by jumping on the anti-Glazer bandwagon. No one is bigger than the shirt... did Matt Le Tissier ever tell the Southampton board he was leaving over no 'assurances'? I think not."

1904: INTER MILAN v TOTTENHAM LINE-UPS:
Inter Milan: Julio Cesar, Maicon, Lucio, Samuel, Chivu, Zanetti, Stankovic, Biabiany, Sneijder, Coutinho, Eto'o.
Subs: Castellazzi, Cordoba, Muntari, Cambiasso, Materazzi, Pandev, Santon.
Tottenham: Gomes, Hutton, Gallas, Bassong, Assou-Ekotto, Lennon, Jenas, Huddlestone, Bale, Modric, Crouch.
Subs: Cudicini, Kaboul, Bentley, Pavlyuchenko, Keane, Palacios, Kranjcar.
Referee: Damir Skomina (Slovenia)

From Czechmate on 606: "Rooney has come up with a great excuse for his exit, playing on the dislike that is already there towards the owners."

1900: Stevo's predos (you mean you haven't missed them?):
Barcelona 3-1 FC Copenhagen
FC Twente 1-1 Werder Bremen
Inter Milan 2-1 Tottenham
Lyon 2-1 Benfica
Man Utd 3-0 Bursaspor
Panathinaikos 1-1 Rubin Kazan
Rangers 1-2 Valencia
Schalke 2-0 Hapoel Tel-Aviv
Wayne Rooney to sign for Real Madrid

1859: MANCHESTER UNITED v BURSASPOR LINE-UPS:
Man Utd: Kuszczak, Rafael Da Silva, Smalling, Vidic, Evra, Fletcher, Carrick, Anderson, Nani, Macheda, Park.
Subs: Amos, Neville, Berbatov, Hernandez, O'Shea, Obertan, Bebe.
Bursaspor: Ivankov, Tandogan, Erdogan, Stepanov, Wederson, Sen, Svensson, Ergic, Ipek, Insua, Yildirim.
Subs: Ozkan, Cimsir, Batalla, Bahadir, Keceli, Nunez, Ibrahim Ozturk.
Referee: Gianluca Rocchi (Italy)

1858: In the absence of Wayne Rooney, Manchester United have left Dimitar Berbatov and Javier Hernandez on the bench tonight, with Federico Macheda starting. Full line-ups in a sec.

From caeaeae on Twitter: "Did the UK get that ad where Rooney ends up with a big beard living in a caravan. The next step?"

From Twirlip on 606: "Looks like a lot of people want to see Man United start to copy the Real/Barca model and just run around the world buying big name players at the peak of their abilities. That has never been United's way of doing things, regardless of the owners."
It's not entirely how Barca do it either, but sometimes you need to.

From Dennis at Royal Holloway uni, via text: "Forget Rooney. This whole season is turning to be a warning of the economic mismanagement of club owners. Man Utd cannot offer Rooney the support he needs because they are riddled with debt. Take note City fans, money doesn't grow on trees; reckless spending and lack of foresight will come back to haunt you."

1849: RANGERS v VALENCIA LINE-UPS:
Rangers: McGregor, Foster, Weir, Bougherra, Papac, Whittaker, Naismith, Davis, Edu, Weiss, Miller.
Subs: Alexander, Fleck, Lafferty, Webster, Little, Wylde, Hutton.
Valencia: Cesar, Bruno, Navarro, Ricardo Costa, Mathieu, Topal, Costa, Dominguez, Pablo, Mata, Aduriz.
Subs: Moya, Maduro, Albelda, Soldado, Vicente, Fernandes, Banega.
Referee: Nicola Rizzoli (Italy)

1849: If you haven't seen the very latest, it is that Wayne Rooney has released a statement confirming his intention to leave Manchester United. This is Rooney: "I met with David Gill last week and he did not give me any of the assurances I was seeking about the future squad. I then told him I would not be signing a new contract."

1847: RANGERS v VALENCIA
Clive Lindsay reports: "On-loan Aberdeen utility man Richard Foster will make his first start for Rangers when they face Valencia. He is expected to play at right back in a back-five, with Steven Whittaker moving to the left in the continued absence of the injured Kirk Broadfoot. Striker Kyle Lafferty is the man to drop out for Foster as Walter Smith reverts to his single-striker formation for European games. On-loan Manchester City winger Vladimir Weiss retains his place in midfield to make his first Champions League appearance for the Glasgow side."

1846: INTER MILAN v TOTTENHAM:
Saj Chowdhury reports: "This is the sort of box-office clash Tottenham fans have been waiting for since... a while. Holders Inter drew their first group match against FC Twente before battering Werder Bremen. Former Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez, whose team lie third in Serie A, will know Harry Redknapp's Spurs like the back of Anfield. Harry says his team will attack although hopefully he's organised his defence in order to keep Samuel "I've scored 10 goals in nine games" Eto'o quiet. Put your seatbelts on."

1844: MANCHESTER UNITED v BURSASPOR
Howard Nurse reports: "Everybody is talking about Wayne Rooney, but fragile Manchester United have a match on their hands against Turkish champions Bursaspor. Victory would enable United to take control of Group C with the return match in Turkey to follow. Bursaspor - nicknamed Yesil Timsahlar or Green Crocodiles - arrive without a point or a goal in the Champions League. Winger Volkan Sen, 23, might be their biggest threat. He can play wide right or left and has lots of pace and technical ability."

1842: You don't have to be called Wayne Rooney for me to want to know your thoughts (though if you are reading, Wayne, you know it makes sense). So get blasting those missives over here: on text to 81111 (UK) and +44 7786200666 (worldwide); via Twitter @Stevo_football and on a 606 thread set up for this very purpose. Izzy wizzy, let's get busy.

1840: I make no apologies for the extraordinary story about Wayne Rooney wanting to leave Manchester United running alongside the Champions League action this evening, none at all. But football there is and it all kicks off at 1945 BST, including Man United v Bursaspor, holders Inter Milan v Tottenham and Rangers v Valencia.

1837: A little over six years ago, an 18-year-old English striker was announcing himself on the European stage with a stunning hat-trick for Manchester United against Turkish side Fenerbahce in the Champions League. Today, as United prepare to face another team from Turkey at Old Trafford, they face the prospect of star man Wayne Rooney never pulling on the famous red-and-white again. Question is, which shirt will he don next? Surely, surely, surely it cannot be Manchester City. Can it?

1834: And did you ever think you'd see anything like this? (I don't want to spoil the surprise, but it's Wayne Rooney-related). By the way, you might need to refresh to see the video below.

1832: I mean, putting to one side what has just happened, have you ever seen anything like this?

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Ferguson confirms Rooney rumours in dramatic media conference

1830: Tell me, faithful readers: Can anyone believe this is really happening?

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