Almunia: All to play for

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John O'Shea's close-range strike in the 17th minute was all the defending champions had to show for their efforts on a night when Almunia was in inspired form.

Almunia said: "1-0 in this stadium is not that bad a result because there are not that many teams who play here and go away with a clean sheet."

He added: "We expected them to start with a high tempo, but in the second half we showed that if Arsenal can keep the ball, then we can beat them. We have to be more or less happy and look forward to the second leg at the Emirates.

"It is our last chance to do something this year, so we will try to put all of the pressure on Manchester United and the fans will help as well."

The Arsenal goalkeeper had set the tone for the night with a fine reaction save to deny Wayne Rooney in the opening moments, before also denying Carlos Tevez and Cristiano Ronaldo.

When Almunia was beaten by Ronaldo's blistering 25-yard strike midway through the second half, the ball struck the crossbar.

Arsene Wenger's squad may have only shown their potential in patches o Wednesday night, but Almunia maintains the fact the tie is not already over means they still have every chance to reach the final when the teams do battle again at Emirates Stadium next Tuesday night.

Wenger knows he has Almunia to thank for the fact Arsenal remain alive in the competition.

"Manuel Almunia was excellent," the Arsenal manager said. "It was a top-class performance from him. His reading of the game was fantastic and his sharpness was superb."