Barcelona will seek to seal their status as the finest team of their generation when they face Manchester United at Wembley today in the most eagerly-anticipated Champions League final in years.
A second triumph in three years will provide irrefutable proof that Pep Guardiola’s men deserve to be bracketed alongside legendary teams like Real Madrid’s 1950s vintage.
Blocking the route to immortality, however, are United, the newly-crowned English champions who are desperate to avenge their bitterly disappointing defeat to the Spanish giants in the Rome final two years ago.
United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has never spoken in detail about what he believes went wrong in 2009, when his team was taken for a dizzying ride on Barcelona’s famous midfield ‘carousel’ in a 2-0 defeat.
Yet to do so would mean having to sacrifice the burgeoning partnership between Wayne Rooney, back to something close to his best, and Javier Hernandez, the young Mexican striker who has been the find of the season.
The bolder option would be to keep faith with the midfield formation which served United so well en route to the final.
Confidence is key
Ferguson has hinted at leaning towards a tactical approach that is more in keeping with United’s attacking traditions.
“We have players who can cause any team a lot of bother and hopefully they will give Barcelona those problems,” said Ferguson. “It’s not just about them, it’s about us too. We’ve to work out what gives us the best chance of winning.”
A goal today will see Messi equal Ruud van Nistlerooy’s record of 12 in a single Champions League campaign.
“If I don’t score and Barcelona wins, it’s unimportant whether I find the net or not.”
Lionel Messi
Regarded as the best player in the world, the sensational Argentine forward is the man the English champions must stop if they are to avoid a repeat of his match-winning display in the 2009 Champions League final.
Wayne Rooney
If United are to win a fourth European Cup, they need Rooney to perform. The England forward cut a forlorn figure in his last Champions League final, but switching to a deeper role has served him well.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 28th, 2011.
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