Football fans everywhere will be counting down the minutes in
anticipation of tonight’s match between Manchester United and Real Madrid. Two
of Europe’s greatest clubs will renew their rivalry in the second leg of their
last 16 Champions League fixture in Old Trafford tonight. If their clash in 2003 at
the quarter final stage is anything to go by we could be in for a really
special night in Old Trafford.
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| Zinedine Zidane in action for Real Madrid in 2003 at Old Trafford |
When beginning to preview the game between Manchester United
and Real Madrid there are so many factors you have to consider before even
looking at the teams that will line out tonight.
Firstly, and perhaps most important of all, is the question of how
good Madrid really are this year. Watching them over the past two games against
their old rivals Barcelona would make you believe they are unbeatable.
Last year Real Madrid blew away the competition in La Liga by
perfecting a deadly system of counter attacking. Teams were unable to cope with
the raw speed of their breaks from deep. Many wondered had the balance of power
once again shifted in Spain, away from the Catalans and back to Los Blancos.
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| How the teams may line out tonight |
However this season it has been no secret that tensions between
Mourinho and the board have reached new levels. This has affected the team and
led some of the players to question Mourinho.
All this combined meant that Madrid had all but surrendered
their La Liga crown by January. They sit in third place, 13 points behind
Barcelona. The goal for them now almost certainly is Europe. Eleven years
without a European cup is a long time in Real Madrid.
However, the erratic performances which have defined them throughout
this season seemed to have come to an end in the past two weeks. Two games against
Barcelona showed a rejuvenated team playing with abandon at a crucial point in
the season.
Their performance against Barca in Camp Nou in the second leg
of the Copa Del Rey was a spectacular display of devastating counter
attacking. Madrid held deep and allowed Barca to press and commit men forward.
Once they turned over possession players swept forward with deadly pace that
proved too much for Barcelona to handle.
It is true to say that the current Barcelona team is not a
shade of the force that they were under Pep Guardiola. At their zenith no team
even came close to competing with that Barcelona side.
It is believed that Ferguson had privately given up hope of ever
winning another Champions League while Guardiola was at Barcelona. In the 2009 CL
final, Manchester United were easily swept aside 2-0 by Barca.
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| Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo battle for possession in the first leg |
Xavi dictated the game from start to finish leaving United
players chasing possession all night in Rome. By the time the 2011 CL final
came around Ferguson was adamant he had learned from the game in Rome.
Barcelona would not be allowed to play the game on their terms.
Whether or not Ferguson had really learned from the mistakes of
the 2009 final mattered little that night in Wembley. Barcelona were on a
different level. They had achieved what many agreed was football perfection. In
his post game press conference Ferguson could barely take in what had happened.
He could only admit that they were the greatest team he had ever come up
against.
What hurt the most for Ferguson was that he had no idea how to
defeat Barcelona. In two attempts his side hadn't even come close to matching
them. You can almost see the hope of ever winning another Champions League
fading from him as he speaks.
To be fair to Ferguson, very few
teams even came close to competing with that Barcelona team when it mattered
most. In three years, the only side that had eliminated them from the Champions
League was Internazionale and that was down to a match that went to extremes of
emotion and effort, an exceptional tactical and defensive masterclass from Jose
Mourinho's side.
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| Cristiano Ronaldo rises above Patrice Evra to score Madrid's equaliser in the Bernabau |
But with the departure of
Guardiola the playing field has leveled out once again in Europe. And Ferguson
knows this. He will have watched the two games between Barcelona and Madrid and
was no doubt impressed by the brilliance of the Madrid counter attack. But he
will also be pleased.
The Barcelona team of 2008-11
were utterly dominant because they dictated the game from start to finish. They
controlled possession for long periods and pressed teams high up the pitch
making it difficult for them to retain any possession themselves.
Madrid, however, are set up to
allow you to dictate the game. They rely on you bringing the game to them and
commit men forward in an attack. The crucial factor for United is that they do
not really need to attack. Not from the start anyway. And this is where the
away goal could prove crucial.
Because it is Madrid who must do
the attacking it forces them to play a game they are not fully familiar with.
Pressing teams who sit deep is not how they like to play. In an interview with
the Sun newspaper, Nemanja Vidic hinted that United will try to force Madrid
wide. He said “when Real play against teams who drop deep they can have a bit
of trouble, because they aren't a team that crosses the ball a lot.”
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| United will try to force Madrid out wide and double up on their wingers |
Apart from Ronaldo and his
prowess in the air, Madrid do lack for aerial options up front. Ferguson may
plan on trying to frustrate Madrid by forcing them to launch in hopeful crosses
and hope his central defenders can win the aerial battle for 90 minutes.
The real danger for United is if
they go behind. Ferguson has said all week in the build up to this game that he
thinks United will score. Deep down I think he might prefer a goalless draw. If
United go behind they will have to press forward in search of an equaliser. And
that is where Madrid will be deadliest.
Mourinho has the edge over
Ferguson in terms of head to head games. Out of 15 matches between the two, Ferguson
has only come out on top twice. Much more than a place in the quarter finals of
the Champions League is being played for tonight. Personal pride is on the line
too.
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| Old rivals: Mourinho and Ferguson |
Whatever way you look at it, it really is a hard game to call.
The tie is hanging on a knife edge and could easily go either way. If Madrid
were to score early it could be a very difficult night for United. However, if
they can hold out Madrid for long enough, frustration might begin to show in
the Spaniards. Mourinho’s side will not feel comfortable being made to play in
a style they are not used to.
Sergio Ramos spoke to the press after Madrid’s 2-1 win over
Barca in the League on Saturday. He said that “the team had been strengthened
by the Clasicos wins and we will go to Manchester convinced we can go through.
Things change – football is about runs, cycles, fashions”.
Ferguson will understand those words better than anyone. He
believed he would never have a chance to win another Champions League as long
as Barcelona were around. Things change, opportunity beckons.
