Lille hoping for déjà vu

Manchester United FC may enter this first knockout round tie as overwhelming favourites but there is no danger of overconfidence given the part Lille played in their early exit from the 2005/06 UEFA Champions League.

• Sir Alex Ferguson's team will arrive in northern France with memories still fresh of losing to the same opposition last term. A 1-0 victory for Lille over United at the Stade de France on 2 November 2005 – courtesy of Milenko Ačimovič's 38th-minute goal – followed a goalless draw at Old Trafford and United paid for those dropped points as they ended the group stage bottom of the section, level on points with Lille who advanced to the UEFA Cup.

• There was no such slip-up from United this season as they secured their progress as Group F winners with a 3-1 home victory over SL Benfica on 6 December last year. After falling behind to a Nélson effort, Nemanja Vidić, Ryan Giggs and Louis Saha got the goals that carried them through. United began their campaign with wins over Celtic FC (3-2), SL Benfica (1-0) and FC København (3-0) before losing their way briefly with back-to-back 1-0 defeats at København and Celtic.

• While United have reached the knockout stage for the tenth time in eleven seasons, Lille are here for the first time. Claude Puel's team secured qualification by beating AC Milan 2-0 in Italy on 6 December via goals from Peter Odemwingie and Kader Keita. That result left them second in Group H, a point clear of AEK Athens FC.

• With UEFA regulations not permitting them to play at their Stadium Lille Métropole, Lille were undefeated in their 'home' matches at RC Lens' Stade Félix-Bollaert, beating AEK Athens 3-1 in between drawing with Milan (0-0) and RSC Anderlecht (2-2). On their travels, they held Anderlecht 1-1 and lost 1-0 at AEK – their only reverse in the group stage – before overcoming Milan.

• Prior to last season, Lille and United had met previously in the 2001/02 UEFA Champions League first group stage. United won 1-0 at Old Trafford in Lille's first UEFA fixture in England through an 89th-minute David Beckham goal while the return match, also played at Lens' Stade Félix-Bollaert, finished 1-1 as Bruno Cheyrou cancelled out Ole Gunnar Solskjær's opener. Lille's overall record against English opponents is respectable with two wins, three draws and just one defeat.

• In nine visits to France, United have registered two wins, five draws and two defeats. Overall in the UEFA Champions League, their recent form on the road has been patchy – September's 1-0 win at Benfica was their first since November 2003 and the only success in their last eleven away matches in the competition.

• United striker Henrik Larsson is eligible to make his first appearance in the UEFA Champions League since joining on loan from Helsingborgs IF. The Swede's last appearance in the competition was in last season's final where he came off the bench to inspire FC Barcelona's comeback victory against Arsenal FC.

• The second leg will be played in Manchester on Wednesday 7 March.