Champions League Semi Final: Barcelona v. Man U
Sir Alex Ferguson has warned Manchester United not to under-estimate Barcelona ahead of their Champions League semi-final first leg meeting.
The Red Devils are firm favourites to reach the final after being paired with the out-of-form Spanish giants in Wednesday's first leg at the Camp Nou.
The Red Devils are firm favourites to reach the final after being paired with the out-of-form Spanish giants in Wednesday's first leg at the Camp Nou.
But despite Barca trailing rivals Real Madrid by 11 points in their domestic league and missing the likes of Ronaldinho and captain Carlos Puyol, Ferguson still believes they will provide formidable opposition.
"I do not see that we should be favourites," he claimed. "It is a very balanced game if you look at the number of quality players on both sides.
"Manchester United and Barcelona must be among the strongest sides in Europe as they have come to this stage of the competition.
"Both clubs deserve to be there and this match would be an attractive final, a fantastic occasion.
"I believe the winners of this game have a great chance in the final."
Meanwhile, Ferguson has confirmed that Wayne Rooney is fully-fit despite picking up a hip injury in the weekend Premier League draw with Blackburn Rovers. However, there are fitness concerns surrounding defenders Nemanja Vidic and Wes Brown.
Brown sat out the training session at the Camp Nou on Tuesday night with a slight injury problem, but Vidic was reportedly taken to hospital in Barcelona with a stomach complaint.
Like last night`s match between Liverpool and Chelsea i do not expect there to be too many goals in tonight`s match, however as he has proved over the years Sir Alex is the master tactician and with Barcelona seemingly in a crisis i think the least Manchester United will get tonight is a draw.
Despite the show of unity from the Barca camp which was demonstrated on Barca TV by the likes of Eto`o, Puyol and Valdes all appealing for the fans to get behind the team for tonight`s clash, i feel the problems at the club run too deep and Rijkaard knows that even winning the Champions League will be no guarantee of him still being in charge come next term.
Barca have to win tonight to stand any chance of progressing to the final in Moscow and they certainly have the players to do it, but in my opinion there are few better teams in the world at the moment at counter attacking then Man U and the doubt is if Barca`s defence can with stand the likes of Ronaldo, Rooney and Tevez.
My opinion is that it cannot and i expect United to get at least a draw and finish off the tie at Old Trafford.
