Manchester United vs. Benfica: Rating the United Players in the CL Draw

What an evening at Old Trafford.

The Manchester United-Benfica rivalry has a long and dramatic history, and matchups between these two European football powerhouses are guaranteed to be exciting. For United, the frustrating draw came with serious ups and downs, from surprise comeback performances for team veterans to serious gaffes from the newcomers. 

Here are the player ratings for Manchester United in tonight's 2-2 Champions League draw. As always, if you want to sound off about tonight's performances and who were the stars and stragglers, have at it in the comments.

Goalkeeper and Defenders

David de Gea: He would be rated lower, but he did do well to fend off a seriously on-form Benfica squad attack in the first half. The second goal was partly the fault of backup failures in the back four, but he should have been more prepared when he saw Pablo Aimar coming right at him. 5.5

Fábio Da Silva: Fábio was looking like he would have another great Champions League game in the first half, linking up with Antonio Valencia and making some daring moves. In the second half though, he ran out of steam, struggled with control, made some silly mistakes and reckless tackles, and let the likes of Axel Witsel and Aimar get the better of him. He still needs time to develop, granted, but perhaps right-back isn't his strong suit. 5.5

Phil Jones: The hero of United's last Champions League victory, against Otelul Galati, looked like he could be tonight's villain with a howler of an own goal in the first few minutes. And when his lack of attention let Aimar through for the equalizer, things somehow got worse. 4.0 

Rio Ferdinand: He made a couple of good decisions, most notably in neutralizing a charging Witsel early on, but overall, a frustrating performance from the former England captain. 5.0

Patrice Evra: The only member of the back four who actually had a pretty good game was the replacement captain. Despite some slip-ups in the first few minutes, Evra's passing game was on, he helped pick up the slack and hold back the Benfica onslaught in the second half, and helped sustain United's last-minute barrage of goal attempts. 7.0 

Midfielders

Nani: Nani looked extremely sluggish at first and unable to hold on to the ball, but he and his amazing '90s-throwback hair quickly found their form and put in a great game. His control was on, his runs were ambitious and mostly successful, and he linked up well with the other attackers. His only shortcomings came in dead-ball situations, which perhaps he should refrain from for a while. 7.5 

Darren Fletcher: Like Michael Carrick, Fletcher started off rusty but ultimately proved to be an asset in midfield, most notably with his cracking go-ahead goal in the second half. His ability to get forward disrupted the flow of Benfica and with a tireless performance and that goal, he would have been the hero tonight, but luck just wasn't on his side. 7.0 

Michael Carrick: In the first few minutes, this looked like it would be a mediocre night for Carrick, as he was outpaced and unable to dismantle the ferocious-looking Benfica attack. But in the end, he turned out to be a surprising revelation with intelligent and accurate passing, linking up well with Ashley Young and Dimitar Berbatov. He would be rated higher if he was able to deal with Aimar more effectively, but it was overall one of his best recent performances in a United shirt. 7.5 

Antonio Valencia: A better performance compared to how he did against Otelul. He played tenaciously and won a few good corners in the second half. He had some good runs, too, although his positioning became predictable after a bit. Still not enough of an impact, but he's getting there. 6.0

Ashley Young: Young is still a little shaky coming back from a long time on the bench, but for his first European trip since his return, he did alright. He did struggle with lack of consistency and serious issues with positioning, ending up offside a number of times. 5.5

Forwards

Dimitar Berbatov: Berbatov has been so eager to score in his last few performances, it was almost a relief to see him finally sink one in. Like Carrick, after a string of disappointments, Berba had one of his better matches for a while in a United shirt. His lack of pace was still a bit frustrating and his finishing faltered at the end, but he was heavily involved in the attacks, met his crosses well, and scored one fantastic equalizer. Welcome back, Berba. 7.5

Subs

Chicharito: He brought tenacity and firepower to the attack in the last 10 minutes, but his accuracy was off. Had he gone on sooner, he could have easily made more of an impact. N/A

Chris Smalling: Someone on Twitter pointed out that Chris Smalling turns 22 today, which was also the score. 2-2. Ha. He didn't play long enough to really make an impact, but he did miss a great chance when he got on the attack. N/A

Men of the Match: Nani, Michael Carrick, Dimitar Berbatov

Weakest Link: Phil Jones