Manchester United got a Battle of Britain clash when they were drawn in the same group as Glasgow Rangers, Greece's Panathinaikos and Germany's Stuttgart in the Champions League draw on Thursday.
The match up between the champions of England and Scotland is a first between the clubs in European Champions League football and is sure to attract huge attention to the games at Ibrox and Old Trafford.
"Yesterday we weren't sure we would be in it. Now we have got Manchester United!" said Rangers chairman John McClelland, the day after his side had scraped their way into the draw with a late goal in Copenhagen in a final qualifier.
"The atmosphere will be electric at both grounds. We want to be in the Champions League. We are and we are delighted about it."
Manchester United's Scottish manager Alex Ferguson said it was a great draw.
"I was half expecting to get a Scottish team, but also not expecting it to happen. But it has."
Chief Executive Peter Kenyon said that the England-Scotland clash was the pick of the draw "Rangers is the big one," he said
"Experience will count. Our experience is second to none. In the last seven years we have reached the quarter-finals or better. We know Champions League nights at Old Trafford are very special."
Adding spice to the clash will be the fact that Ferguson and Rangers coach McLeish were old associates during Aberdeen's glory years in the 1980s when Ferguson was in charge at Pittodrie and McLeish was a defensive stalwart.
Ferguson was also a striker on Rangers books early in his playing career but eventually fell out of favour and was transferred.
Manchester United's great English rival Arsenal were thrown into a demanding first round group against last season's semi-finalists Inter Milan, Dynamo Kiev and Lokomotiv Moscow.
Arsenal chairman David Dein underlined how far his team will have to travel to make it through saying: "It's great for the air miles."
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