CL Preview: Man Utd v Barcelona

The Road to Moscow is just one step ahead before two great teams in European Football - FC Barcelona and Manchester United. It seems that the lady luck might favour the English side playing the home advantage; the fact remains that an away goal for the Catalans will be too costly for the Red Devils. Eyefootball previews the match that the world awaits.

Venue: Old Trafford [61,250]

Referee: Herbert Fandel[GRE]

First Leg Result: 0-0 at Camp Nou.

"Show Your Colours" is what Sir Alex Ferguson has asked his loyal fans to do for the club, to roar them to Moscow tonight. Barca will be welcomed by a sea of red and white colours. Fergie is confident and has requested his fans to back the team and encourage them to put on a brilliant display.

Strength in Defense

Manchester United is undoubtedly one of the best attacking sides in Europe, players like Rooney, Ronaldo and Tevez have proved time and time again. The strange fact is that it is not the attacking line-up that has saved the Red Devils every match, it is their superior defense that stood out in many matches. The knock-out rounds of this season are a great example for this, they did not allow AS Roma to make any convincing attacking moves in both the legs. At Camp Nou, Ferndinand, Hargreaves, Brown and Evra stood their ground and defended with discipline and order. Though Barca enjoyed a lot of possession, which is their strength, it is more than an achievement for Fergie's boys to hold them on a nil-nil draw at Camp Nou. It is a fact that United's defense will play a major role in the second leg of the semi-final.

Possession game

The Barcelona way of playing football is beautiful, elegant and with authority.The short passes, the through balls, the forward runs and the high standard of individual abilities account to the fact that they never lose the ball cheaply. Barcelona has always followed the possession play and they love to pass the ball around finding unmarked players and moving the ball upfront. Rijkaard is in no way different in making his players adapt to the strategy and tactics that always give enjoyment to the fans and football lovers. The first leg match saw Barca enjoying a good deal of possession and playing it smoothly, slowly building up and creatively planning the next step. This nature of their play is hard to tackle and Ferguson and the United players will have to play a very different game to stop them from scoring early.

Recent Form

Manchester United: WWDDL

v Chelsea (A) 1-2

v Barca (A) 0-0

v Blackburn (A) 1-1

v Arsenal (H) 2-1

v Roma (H) 1-0

The last match against Chelsea ended in defeat and the fact that EPL title race is still open, will be a roadblock for United and that might affect their performance in the semi-final clash too. The top side in the EPL has failed to secure a win in the last three matches. The fact remains that Manchester United are unbeated in home in the last few matches and that added to the 0-0 away draw will give them immense confidence

Barcelona: WDDDL

v Deportivo (A) 0-2

v Man Utd (H) 0-0

v Espanyol (H) 0-0

v Recreativo (A) 2-2

v Schalke (H) 1-0

Barcelona is out of the title chase in La Liga and European victory remains Rijkaard's salvation in the otherwise disappointing season. The everpraised Barca attack has been shy of goals in the last few matches, they have scored only three goals in last six matches. Barcelona are going through a poor run in form having secured only one win in the last five matches, and a rather intimidating 2-2 draw against relegation battling Recreativo. It will require a brave performance from the players upfront to challenge the highly acclaimed United defence.

Injuries and Suspensions

Manchester United: Vidic and Wayne Rooney picked up injuries in the last match against Chelsea. Vidic got kneed in the face by Drogba and Roony took a knock on the hip bone moments after scoring United's only goal in the match. Ferguson is hopeful that they will be alright, but it is highly unlikely if the duo might play.

Darren Fletcheer has returned to the team after the knee injury.

Barcelona: The young wing attacker Giovani is out injured after he received a blow to his head in the match against Deportivo. The second choice keeper, Jorquera is also injured. Rafael Marquez, the man who marked Cristiano Ronaldo closely in the first-leg is out suspended and that would be a major blow for Barca.

Though it is a concern, the back wall will be secure with the return of captain Carlos Puyol who had missed the first leg due to suspension. It will surely add more confidence to the entire team. Edmilson is also called up to the squad. Oleguer and Esquirro are omitted.

Men to watch

Manchester United: The Red Devils will be depending a lot on their top goal scorer of this season in all competitions, Cristiano Ronaldo, if they are to go through to the finals. It was he who saved them in many a situations and with the absence of Rooney upfront, he will have a major role to play. It seems that Park will play in the left-side wing and Patrice Evra will give him enough support. The form that he is in, makes Evra a tough contestant to deal with, he works very hard and makes run with the ball to the by-line and crosses the ball into the box and he runs back and guards his area well. It will be his duty to closely mark Lionel Messi from scoring or making that killer ball tonight.

Barcelona: The Blaugrana's have a number of players who can play major role in making the team win the game. From the performances in the last few matches, Andres Iniesta stands out; he can play in the left, right and center, he is always looking for opportunities to score and play the killer ball. It will be his creativity and vision that Barca look forward for, in addition to his forward runs and brilliant volleys. He was surely the man-of-the-match for Barca in the first-leg and it was unfortunate that a clear penalty decision was not awarded on his favour. Lionel Messi, Eto'o and Henry trio will be the ones who are most likely to score goals, but it is the combination of Xavi and Iniesta that drives the Barca engine forward. Yaya Toure is a name often forgotten easily, but the role he plays in Barca is beyond compare; he wins the ball back quickly and doesn't allow the opponents to take advantage of any loose ball played. He has done the job of the 'retriever' near to perfection this season, thanks to his superb tackling and his physical strength. He will be tempted to take one or two shots at goal, if the game is more open.

Probable Line-up

Manchester United [4-4-2]: van der Sar-Evra, Brown, Ferdinand, Hargreaves- Park ,Carrick, Scholes, Nani, Tevez, Ronaldo

Barcelona [4-3-3]: Valdes- Abidal, Milito, Puyol, Zambrotta- Yaya Toure, Xavi,Deco - Iniesta, Eto'o, Messi.

Final Score Prediction

Manchester United 1-1 Barcelona , Barca go through to final with the away goal