Preamble Hello girls! So, another home game for Manchester United, and another old boys' reunion. Yet whereas last time the fans had little but contempt for Carlos Tevez and Mark Hughes, this time there will be a mixture of reactions: genuine warmth for the Sunderland manager Steve Bruce, gentle respect for Phil Bardsley, Fraizer Campbell and David Healy, and complete indifference towards the world's next great left-back, Kieran Richardson.

This should be an interesting game. Sunderland redefined the phrase "parking the bus" at Old Trafford last season, playing 10-0-0 and losing 1-0 to an injury-time winner from Nemanja Vidic, but they are much more comfortable in their own skin these days and I reckon they'll have a go at United's surprisingly fragile defence today. The psychoti fibrous pair of Lee Cattermole and Lorik Cana in the centre of midfield allow them to play 4-4-2, and Darren Bent is in one of his strikingly frequent purple patches. With Ryan Giggs in the mother of all purple patches and Wayne Rooney and Dimitar Berbatov playing as well as they ever have together, this should be entertaining stuff.

Should.

Team news, aka the Prattle of 4-4-2 Just the seven changes from Tinkerbell today. The men who survive from Wednesday's win over Wolfsburg are John O'Shea, Nemanja Vidic and the two unrotatables, Patrice Evra and Wayne Rooney. The promising 18-year-old Danny Welbeck starts a live Premier League game for the first time, almost certainly on the left wing, but the rested Ryan Giggs isn't even on the bench. There are two changes for Sunderland, both in defence: Phil Bardsley and Anton Ferdinand come in for Paulo Da Silva and John Mensah.

Man Utd (4-4-2) Foster; O'Shea, Vidic, Evans, Evra; Nani, Fletcher, Scholes, Welbeck, Rooney, Berbatov.

Subs: Kuszczak, Ferdinand, Brown, Anderson, Carrick, Fabio Da Silva, Valencia.

Sunderland (4-4-2) Gordon; Bardsley, Turner, Ferdinand, Richardson; Malbranque, Cana, Cattermole, Reid; Bent, Jones.

Subs: Fulop, McCartney, Nosworthy, Campbell, Henderson, Da Silva, Healy.

Referee Alan Wiley (Staffordshire)

"This is awesome" writes Paul Martin. "A few beers while watching the match at home and then out to experience all London has to offer. I love Saturdays." Is thatreally awesome? I don't know. To me, awesome is hearing that Joe Kinnear is going to do a cover of All For One's I Swear, but with his own effing lyrics; awesome is waking up still drunk from the night before and thinking, I could do with a bag of crisps here, only to realise a split-second later that you fell asleep with your hand in a half-eaten bag of crisps; awesome is being able to download a brand new hairline for £4.99. That's awesome.

1 min Sunderland, in white, kick off from right to left.

2 min "It occurred to me that the Manchester United centre-back Nemanja Vidic has a surname comprised entirely of Roman numerals: VIDIC," notes Damien Neva. "Of course the syntax of the letters makes for an impossible number. Nevertheless, what other footballers out there have names M, D, C, L, X, V, and I? My guess is none. Bonus for any name that results in a possible number."

3 min A very good start from Sunderland, who have had all the possession so far. Reid's free-kick from the left is headed over his own bar by the off-balance Evra, but the corner comes to nothing.

4 min "Yes but what does London have to offer?" wonders Niall Harden. "I'm here for the first time in two years, and yesterday wandered down King's Cross - thought I saw Barry Glendenning but to be honest it could've been anyone - and chose a restaurant in Brick Lane because it had a five-year-old OBO printed out as a recommendation in the window. Tonight my host is busy so suggestions for London evening fun would be gratefully received!"

5 min This has been a fine start from Sunderland, who are still the more fluent and progressive side.

6 min "Sasa Ilic" says David Wall. This, I'm glad to relate, is not a random exclamation but an answer to Damien Neva's second-minute question. Thomas Lachlan also suggests the Bosnian Semir Cilic.

GOAL! Manchester United 0-1 Sunderland (Bent 7) This is fully deserved, and it's a terrific goal as well. Cattermole, under no pressure, slid a pass into Darren Bent, who had his back to goal 25 yards out. His first touch took him infield away from O'Shea, who had given him far too much room anyway, and with his second he rammed a superb low shot past Foster's right hand and into the corner. That's a really good goal, not unlike one Kevin Phillips scored on this ground for Sunderland in 2002, and a really well-timed one with Fabio Capello in the crowd.

8 min "We have a side bet (next round) on how soon it will be before you swoon over a superfluous Berbatov backheel," says Kyle Karinen. "I have 17 minutes or less. Please don't disappoint." He'll have to touch the ball first.

10 min United have started to wake up a little after a truly diabolical start, and Turner uses his body to stop Welbeck getting a shot at goal.

13 min Sunderland are carrying a real menace on the counter, and Evans has to head Richardson's cross clear. While United have been poor, Sunderland's start has been top-class, as much in their courage and intent as in their execution.

15 min Fletcher lumps a 50-yard pass into touch. United are dreadful.

17 min Nani is taken down by a brainless challenge from Richardson, 25 yards out and slightly right of centre. Rooney whaps the free-kick into the wall. From the follow up, Welbeck mistimes his heading motion as he runs to a good near-post cross from Rooney, and heads only fresh air as a consequence. That was a decent chance.

18 min "Is it me or does Rooney and Bent have an attractive air of unpredictability about it for England?" asks Tom Seavers. "Always love to see international defenders play against English strikers they don't normally meet in the annual Champions League merry-go-round." Yeah, it's you. I might just take Bent as a reserve impact sub for Defoe, but no more than that.

21 min Cana and Cattermole have an iron grip on midfield at the moment. United can't get their passing game going at all.

23 min United have a couple of corners in quick succession, but the square root of eff all ensues.

24 min Scholes picks up his obligatory yellow card for a cynical trip on Bent. He can have no complaints.

25 min Sunderland's defence is very narrow, and that's sensible because, for the first time maybe in decades, the wingers are the weakest areas of the United side. Welbeck hasn't really got in the game yet, and Nani is having a stinker.

27 min "Greetings from the Wanderers," says Dileep Premachandran. "From what I'm reading, Cattermole is having a great game. I wonder if Rafa Benitez is watching and wondering why he didn't try harder to sign him. Having watched Lucas and Aurelio give Invisible-Men performances against Fiorentina, there'll be a few who wonder how good an addition he might have been. Not to mention that he's English!" He has been extremely influential so far. I bet he's absolutely horrible to play against.

28 min A rasping daisy-cutter from Jones, 25 yards out, is saved by the plunging Foster.

29 min Kieran Richardson is booked for a cynical block on Welbeck, who attempted to spin off him for a return pass. As with Scholes a few minutes earlier, he had no defence.

30 min "Fair enough Rob," says Tom Seavers. "But I've always preferred Bent to Defoe. Either way, come South Africa next summer I fear with either starting for England I may be weeping into a pint of dignity-reducer by the quarters - neither is international class." No, but Defoe might be an international-class substitute.

31 min Sunderland are still extremely comfortable. The mother of all hairdryer sessions is just 14 minutes away.

32 min Nani and Welbeck have swapped flanks, but the fact that the players don't trust Nani in particular is evident in the frequency with which they are going down the middle. I'll be amazed if Valencia doesn't come on at half-time, even though he has hardly set the world alight so far. Leaving Giggs out of the entire squad already looks like hubristic folly from Sir Alex Ferguson.

34 min Nani is brushed aside with contemptuous ease by Bardsley. He is a complete disgrace. That he is talented is not in doubt; that he has not a solitary one how to turn that talent into results is also not in doubt.

35 min United should have had a penalty there. Nani's bouncing cross from the left hit the covering Reid, who was trying to chest it back to his keeper, high on the arm. That looked a pretty clear penalty, but oddly the players didn't appeal. I think Alan Wiley, in his defence, might have been blindsided.

37 min The increasingly frustrated Rooney leaves a foot in on Reid, easing his studs down the back of Reid's leg. I'm surprised he didn't get booked for that.

38 min "Is Fergie going to give himself a hairdryer for not even including Giggs on the bench?" says Robert Hisnay. "Next week is an international week, too." The fact they are so dependent on a man who is nearly 36 might be considered a problem by many. But we should take nothing away from Sunderland, who have been very good indeed and fully deserve to be ahead.

39 min "Apathy," says Yannis. "Definition: an absence of emotion or enthusiasm or Berbatov without the football." This hasn't been one of his better days. In fact he's been dire, but he hasn't been served well from midfield. Only Rooney has really chased the game. Even Fletcher looks subdued. It's all a bit surreal.

42 min That sums the half up: Scholes, the man with the highest pass-completion ratio in the league this season, plays a straightforward 10-yard pass straight to Cana. I'm not sure I can remember United being quite so inept and uncertain at home since they were taken to the cleaners by QPR on New Year's Day 1992. It truly has been that bad.

45 min "Can I be the first to point out that the Rumours page took the piss unmercifully out of Darren Bent before he was signed by the Cats?" says Mike Ollier. "Words like banjo and caw's arse were freely used."

45+1 min There will be four decades of added time.

Half time: Manchester United 0-1 Sunderland United are booed off after a diabolical first-half performance. Darren Bent scored a fine goal and Sunderland protected their lead effortlessly. Craig Gordon hasn't made a save. Sir Alex Ferguson has that look on his phizog, and I pity the fool who makes eye contact with him in the dressing room. See you in 10 minutes.

Half-time emails

"I used to love Paul Scholes..Unfortunately, in recent times it's a bit like watching your favourite 'adult entertainment' actress, as a consequence of the passage of time, appearing in (even more) dubious features..." - Jim Burke.

"How many times have we seen Rooney leave his boot in late or take a swing of the elbow at a defender and see no card? Since it seems clear that the referee saw the kick, and he earlier booked Scholes for that late trip, how can he not book Rooney? Almost every week I'm in awe of how many cheap shots Rooney can get in without getting a single card" - Michael Kelley.

"United may be top of the league, but this is by no means a title-winning squad. There's far too many players who are not going to be at the club in the long term, based on their performances this season, and I think it's fair to say Nani wont be the last out the door. I haven't been this frustrated with a player at OT since Barthez had that notable half-season wobble at the beginning of the century" - Andy Winn.

46 min Anderson has replaced Paul Scholes, and United kick off from right to left.

47 min A chance for United. Ferdinand's back header to Gordon fell short as both keeper and defender dithered; Nani nipped in and his toepoke was saved by Gordon, who was about two centimetres away from Nani at the point of contact. It came to Rooney on the edge of the box, and his shot was blocked by Turner.

GOAL! Manchester United 1-1 Sunderland (Berbatov 51) What a fine goal this is. Moments after Rooney's close-range shot is very well saved by Gordon, O'Shea curls in a long cross from right and Berbatov, 15 yards out and facing away from goal, hooks an acrobatic, curling volley across Gordon and into the corner. That was beautifully placed. It wasn't as spectacular as it sounds – it wasn't a full scissor-kick and it bounced on the way in – but it was truly masterful in its technical execution.

54 min United are all over Sunderland now, and Anderson is rightly penalised for a foul on Bardsley in the Sunderland box. Sir Alex Ferguson is having a right go at Mike Dean, who absolutely is not a Liverpool fan. I might be imagining it, but I suspect I saw an 'eff' or 17 there, maybe even a 'youse'.

56 min "Since Moscow (and probably even before) this United team have lacked the fluency they had after the first league win in this current run," says Gerry Scott. "They have kept winning and been good and even very good at times but it strikes me that if any of Chelsea, Liverpool or Arsenal got their act together then they could probably have taken the league last year. The longer it goes on the more I think City might actually do something. Certainly they are best placed to strengthen at Christmas." I agree completely. I think City have a decent chance this year.

58 min Evra wins a corner on the left. It'll be taken by Nani, who has been very good since half time. It goes all the way across the box to Rooney, who wins another corner off Ferdinand. This time Rooney takes it, and Evans's header is easily saved by Gordon.

GOAL! Manchester United 1-2 Sunderland (Jones 58) Another Ben Foster howler and Sunderland are back in front! Reid played a couple of good one-twos, the second with Jones, and then stood up an inviting, angled cross to the far post. Foster came out feebly and Jones was far too strong, knocking Foster over and bumping the ball into the empty net from six yards. No question of a foul there. To add to United's misery, Fletcher was booked straight after the goal – he missed a lunge at Reid in the build-up, and the referee Alan Wiley played a good advantage

61 min That goal was completely against the run of play, but it has rattled United and they haven't recovered the fluency they had before Jones's goal.

63 min After a nice bit of interplay from United, Welbeck should probably have played Rooney through on goal. But he just couldn't find the angle for the pass around Turner, and instead swerved a good effort just past the angle of post and bar from 25 yards.

64 min Bardsley is booked for repeat offending.

65 min A fantastic effort from Rooney, who plays a one-two with Berbatov and takes the shot early from the right edge of the box, across Gordon and just wide of the far post.

66 min Berbatov makes a fool of Richardson on the right side of the box and then thrashes in a low cross with the outside of the right foot. Welbeck meets it first on the six-yard line, but his shot is brilliantly blocked by the sliding defender, Turner I think.

69 min Nani's sensational cross from the right – his delivery has been extremely good since half-time – just misses the head of Evans and is headed wide for a corner by Turner.

70 min Nani's bobbling 25-yarder is comfortably saved by the diving Gordon.

71 min United make their last two changes: Carrick and Valencia replace Fletcher and Welbeck, so Nani will switch to the left wing.

72 min Rooney's vicious 25-yarder is deflected wide by Ferdinand. Berbatov, running away from goal, heads the corner over from six yards.

73 min Sunderland bring on the 19-year-old Jordan Henderson for Andy Reid, who has had a very good game. But they are leaving two up, which is admirable and unusual in the circumstances.

74 min That was so nearly 3-1. Henderson did brilliantly, skinning Evra and then Evans on the right and finding Bent in the area by the touchline. He passed it back across the face of the six-yard box to Jones, who was about to apply the finish when the covering Carrick got the merest touch to take it away from him. Without that touch Jones would surely have scored.

76 min Ferdinand is booked for kicking the ball away by the halfway line. They're a smart family, the Ferdinands.

77 min Ah, Sunderland have gone to 4-5-1. Bent (left) and Malbranque (right) are playing wide, with Henderson tucking in to make three in midfield. And at the moment they look very comfortable.

81 min United can't put two passes together at the moment. It's extremely comfortable for Sunderland, and it has been for all bar the ten minutes either side of Berbatov's goal. Cattermole, Cana and particularly Turner have been immense.

83 min Anderson curves across goal and over the bar from the edge of the box. Sunderland are bringing on another ex-United player, Fraizer Campbell, for Jones, who has cramp.

85 min: Richardson sent off This is nonsense: Kieran Richardson kicks the ball away and gets a second yellow card. Sunderland complain vehemently but there is no reason to do so. That was just absolutely stupid.

86 min Sunderland bring on another left-back, George McCartney, for Steed Malbranque.

87 min United win their 10th corner, and it's headed clear by the superb Turner.

88 min Rooney's deep, inswinging cross from deep on the left is headed over by Vidic. He was only four yards out, but he was beyond the far post and couldn't get over the ball.

90 min There will be a minimum of four minutes' added time. But the atmosphere is flat and there is no real sense that a goal is coming.

90+1 min Carrick lashes a bouncing ball wide from 25 yards.

GOAL! Manchester United 2-2 Sunderland (Ferdinand own goal 90) Unbelievable. After a bit of pinball in the area, Evra's dragged shot – which was going well wide of the far post – deflects in off Anton Ferdinand. That is so, so cruel on Sunderland. There is nothing to be said about the added time, by the way: that goal came after two minutes, so put any childish complaints back in their box, please.

90+4 min United win three consecutive corners on the left. From the third, the ball breaks loose and Berbatov's shot is brilliantly saved by Gordon! What an incredible finish.

Full time: Manchester United 2-2 Sunderland United get out of jail again, and you have to feel for an heroic and courageous Sunderland side: their dogs of wor, Cana and Cattermole, muzzled United, while Ferdinand and particularly Turner defended brilliantly. United were desperately poor, but you have to admire the mental strength that got them yet another vital injury-time goal. In the end, they might even have won it. Thanks for your emails; night.