Hello and welcome to our live coverage in what should be an intriguing night of Champions League action.

Here are the teams for the United and City games:

Man Utd v Basle line-ups
Man Utd: De Gea, Rafael Da Silva, Jones, Ferdinand, Evra, Anderson, Carrick, Giggs, Valencia, Welbeck, Young. Subs: Lindegaard, Owen, Berbatov, Park, Nani, Fletcher, Diouf.
Basel: Sommer, Steinhofer, Abraham, Dragovic, Park, Fabian Frei, Cabral, Zoua, Granit Xhaka, Alexander Frei, Streller. Subs: Colomba, Ajeti, Schurpf, Chipperfield, Taulant Xhaka, Kovac, Pak.
Referee: Paolo Tagliavento (Italy)

Bayern Munich v Man City line-ups
Bayern Munich: Neuer, Rafinha, Van Buyten, Boateng, Lahm, Schweinsteiger, Gustavo, Muller, Kroos, Ribery, Gomez. Subs: Butt, Petersen, Robben, Usami, Contento, Alaba, Tymoschuk.
Man City: Hart, Richards, Kompany, Toure, Clichy, Nasri, Barry, Toure Yaya, Silva, Aguero, Dzeko. Subs: Pantilimon, Zabaleta, Lescott, Milner, Kolarov, Tevez, De Jong.
Referee: Viktor Kassai (Hungary)

We’ll be focusing mainly on the City-Bayern game, but we’ll also be keeping an eye on each of the other ties, and particularly the United game.

Check out Heineken Star Player while you’re watching the Champions League or following our coverage tonight. Nice online game where you build points by predicting goals and what happens at free kicks and corners in realtime. There are weekly VIP Trips to top Champions League games up for grabs for the table toppers.

The link is http://www.heineken.com/ie/AgeGateway.aspx.

Man City’s new, seemingly self-appointed cheerleader-in-chief, Noel Gallagher, has been giving interviews during the week. It’s funny how you rarely saw him give interviews back, not so long ago, when they were terrible (City that is, not Oasis).

Alas, Yorke is not the only Sky pundit to suffer from a chronic compulsion to regularly resort to cliche.

Ahhh, that Champions League music never gets old.

Martin Tyler has just assured me that Frank Ribery is in terrific form. I don’t know about everyone else reading this, but the Frenchman has always seemed overrated in my eyes… He’ll probably get a hat-trick now.

We’re underway in Munich…

Prior to tonight’s match, Mancini said he wants an “attacking game”. I never thought he’d say those words after their performances last season.

City had a very decent shout for a penalty there, with Boateng rashly sliding in and catching Silva in the box. Bayern get lucky as the referee waves City protests away.

City have started well. They’ve been in the Bayern Munich box a couple of times already without ever really carving out a clear opening.

It’s been a quiet evening in the other games so far, with no goals as of yet being scored. As you’ll see at the top of the page, Inter beat CSKA 3-2 in the 5pm game to continue manager Claudio Ranieri’s fine start at the club.

Munich are beginning to pressurise City now, as Rafinha’s dangerous-looking cross is deflected narrowly away to safety. The Bayern right back looks a decent player and could pose Clichy some serious problems tonight.

GOAL FOR UNITED!!!

ANOTHER GOAL FOR UNITED!!!

MAN UNITED 2-0 BASEL: Welbeck has scored twice. The first was a layoff by Giggs to the England striker’s scuffed shot just inside the box somewhat flukily found its way into the corner of the net. For the second, Giggs again assisted, as his through ball enabled Welbeck to beat the offside trap and side-foot it into the corner from around the same position that he scored his first goal. Game over already?

NAPOLI 2-0 VILLAREAL: Goals from Marek Hamsik and Edinson Cavani have put Napoli in command in the other Group A game tonight.

United aren’t exactly short of quality strikers at the moment, are they?

Poor clearance from Clichy, who has looked nervy, and the ball falls invitingly to Kroos, but the German makes a mess of the shot and skies the ball well over.

REAL MADRID 1-0 AJAX: Who else but Cristano Ronaldo has given Jose Mourinho’s men the lead with one of his less spectacular efforts, scored from close in.

Lyon 1-0 Dinamo Zagreb: Gomis has given the French team the lead.

Nicely struck shot just outside the box from Schweinsteiger, and Hart dives well to his left to make the save.

There isn’t much to separate the two sides at the moment, though City look slightly more dangerous in attack.

HOW DID HE MISS? Perfect cross to find Schweinsteiger who somehow slots it over when it seemed easier to score. Gareth Barry will breathe a sigh of relief as it was his poor pass that gave away possession.

GOAL FOR BAYERN!!!

Joe Hart can only parry a shot from Ribery and Mario Gomez is on hand to comfortably slot in the the second rebound, after Hart did well to save the first.

http://youtu.be/0J2QdDbelmY

This song started playing the minute Bayern scored. And it works surprisingly well, nicely complementing the German crowd’s euphoria following the goal.

GOAL FOR BAYERN!!!

Free kick played in and Schweinsteiger’s header is well-saved by Hart, but again Gomez is on hand to score the rebound. If you looked up the definition of opportunistic in the dictionary right about now, there’d be a picture of Mario Gomez.

HALF-TIME: BAYERN MUNICH 2-0 MAN CITY

It’s now half-time in all the other Champions League games taking place tonight.

City have perhaps been a tad unlucky. They matched Bayern for large portions of that first half and were unlucky not get a penalty. Mind you, Bayern could also have had a penalty when Kompany less-than-subtly blocked Ribery’s run inside the box.

City did, however, concede two sloppy goals. Roberto ‘I think we’ll beat Bayern Munich tonight’ Mancini will not be happy.

Here’s that first Welbeck goal I mentioned earlier.

And here’s the second…

City are starting to look like they’re in trouble in the table, especially with Napoli winning. If they lose tonight, they’ll probably have to win at least one of their other away games against Napoli and Villareal – no mean feat.

The second half has begun…

Wasteful ball from Aguero in a good position for City and the ball goes out of play. The Argentinian has failed to impress so far tonight.

City really aren’t at their best when trying to recover a lead. They’ve hit a few aimless passes in this second half already, which indicates they’re short of ideas. Worrying from their perspective, given that Bayern look fairly solid at the back and won’t be making any stupid mistakes in the near future.

REAL MADRID 3-0 AJAX: The Spanish side appear to be coasting, with Karim Benzema adding to goals by Kaka and Ronaldo.

Somewhat bizarrely, Dzeko is replaced by De Jong. Will someone please tell Mancini that City aren’t defending a lead?

GOAL FOR BASEL!!!

Fabian Frei has just hit a well-struck volley into the corner. Game on!

GOAL! MAN UNITED 2-2 BASEL

As the goals fly in in Manchester, there is similar drama in Munich, as both Dzeko and Tevez get into heated arguments with Mancini on the touchline.

That last Basel goal was scored by Alexander Frei, who headed in a cross by his namesake and the previous goalscorer Fabian Frei.

My German isn’t the greatest admittedly, but I think the Bayern fans are chanting the equivalent of ‘easy, easy’ in their language.

Perfectly timed tackle from Boateng, who prevents Aguero from getting through on goal.

I’m guessing Basel’s comeback has something to do with the sense of complacency United often display at this stage of the Champions League.

Another baffling substitution, as Nasri is replaced by Milner. Are City actually still trying to win this game, or are they merely happy to keep the score down?

Bayern look to seal it with a third, as Schweinsteiger’s shot is well parried away for a corner by Hart.

Kolarov has now replaced Barry… Words fail me.

PENALTY FOR BASEL!!!

GOAL FOR BASEL!!!

Alexander Frei consummately slots his penalty into the top left-hand corner of the goal, after Valencia gives away a sloppy penalty. The upset is very much on at Old Trafford.

This is quite an incredible stat (h/t Hugh O’Connell):

Okay, I’m switching channels to the United game, as the City match seems virtually all over. Famous last words I know, but still.

Just under five minutes remaining in all the games tonight.

In stark contrast to City, United are going all-out attack, leaving it 2 on 2 at the back.

Penalty claim for United, but Ashley Young really was clutching at straws there.

Berbatov heads it straight at the keeper amid more half-hearted penalty claims, with the Bulgarian saying he was pushed.

GOAL FOR UNITED!!!

Great ball in from Nani, showing his class, and Ashley Young is on hand at the back post to head it in. Seconds later, Welbeck heads it narrowly wide. Can United find a last-minute winner?

Incredible! A shot from the Basel midfielder inside his own half has David De Gea diving frantically and missing the ball. Luckily for him, it goes wide. Shades of Pedro Mendes there.

The ball’s lobbed into the box and falls to Berbatov, who hits it into the side-netting.

FULL TIME: MAN UNITED 3-3 BASEL

What an ending that was! And what a game by the sounds of it. Not that the City match, which has now ended, lacked entertainment.

All the games have now finished, as has been noted above.

So still, Alex Ferguson retains his extraordinary record (see 21.22).

Michael Crick is the Channel 4 Political Correspondent for anyone who’s wondering.

The newly-recalled Kolo Toure has said Man City “didn’t defend as a team”. He’s hardly going to blame it solely on the defence I suppose.

All in all, it’s been a disappointing night for the English teams. Man City were comprehensively beaten and United dropped points for the second time this week.

Our stats man (i.e. Sky Television) has just told me that Man United have also lost their 20-game winning streak at Old Trafford.

Okay, time for a poll. Given that their loss of form has coincided with his absence, we’re asking: can Man United survive without Wayne Rooney?

BREAKING: MANCINI HAS JUST SAID CARLOS TEVEZ REFUSED TO COME ON THE PITCH AS A SUBSTITUTE WHEN ASKED BY MANCINI!!!

Wow! I feel sorry for Mancini in that case. He looked quite upset. Very selfish from Tevez. Surely that’s the end of his City career if what Mancini says is true.

Graeme Souness has branded Tevez “a disgrace to football”.

Dzeko looked very unhappy when he came off tonight as well. And Mario Balotelli is not exactly averse to controversy either. What is it about Man City and temperamental, emotionally erratic strikers?

Also in that interview, Mancini unsurprisingly said he thought City should have been given that penalty in the first half (see 19.52).

I have to admit I don’t blame Mancini at all if he never gives Tevez the opportunity to play for City again. After all that’s gone on, to refuse to play when he’s making so much money every week is simply inexcusable. Moreover, it’ll be a brave club that buys Tevez in light of such poor behaviour.

Right, that’s your lot from me. I’m off to catch one of the few remaining Luas’s. Thanks for reading and keep the comments coming in below. And don’t forget to check out our Rugby World Cup liveblog very early (7am) tomorrow morning, as Georgia take on Romania.