Wolfsburg players celebrate United's fall

Wolfsburg have never before competed in a UEFA Champions League round of 16 tie, yet their determination to enjoy more nights like Tuesday's 3-2 victory against Manchester United leaves the Wolves feeling fearless ahead of Monday's draw.

The home fans inside the VfL Wolfsburg Arena welcomed two-goal hero Naldo into the crowd following the final whistle of a frenetic encounter against Louis van Gaal's Red Devils. On the turf below, the Brazilian's team-mates hunkered down to enjoy the spectacle. "The team delivered a great performance tonight; ours was a deserved victory," the defender said afterwards.

The reward of a place among the tournament's last 16 still sinking in, Vieirinha rightly sought to savour the moment. "It's a historic night and so we must now enjoy this," he said. "At the very least, the other teams must have respect for us. It is never easy to beat Manchester United, even though everybody says it might not be the same Manchester United of recent years. They have great players with a lot of quality. To finish first in the UEFA Champions League group stage is not easy."

Those sentiments were echoed by coach Dieter Hecking who said: "When I see who came second in their groups – Paris Saint-Germain, Juventus and Benfica [for example] – they are big teams, but we are also good. We've got to take it as it comes, and we have a chance, so we want to take it."

Wolfsburg's win – which ended a run of seven consecutive losses against English Premier League opponents – meant Hecking's team finished top of their qualifying section. In a game which they went behind to Anthony Martial's tenth minute opener, the side from Lower Saxony displayed resilience in levelling through Naldo's leveller and then leading via Vieirinha's second. Joshua Guilavogui's late own-goal looked to have earned a point for the visitors, only for Naldo to head the winner six minutes from time.

"I told [my team-mate] Dante before the match that I would be moving towards the near post – I usually remain in the centre for set pieces," Naldo explained of his first goal in the 13th minute. "It was a surprise for United that I connected with the ball so well. My second was more difficult [to score than the first] and I was just happy to see the ball in the back of the net."

A deafening roar from the home support greeted Wolfsburg's second of the night, a spectacularly well-worked effort which Vieirinha put the finishing touch to. "Yes, our second goal was beautiful," the Portuguese international said afterwards. "At the beginning of the move the combinations were amazing between Julian Draxler and Max Kruse. The easy part was putting the ball in the back of the net."