With hopes of a top-four finish in the Premier League fading, United go into their match at Greek champions Olympiakos desperate for a positive result. PHOTO: AFP
Not only does the competition represent United’s last realistic hope of silverware this season, but David Moyes’s side may need to win the Champions League just to qualify for next season’s tournament.
United are currently 11 points below Liverpool, who occupy the fourth and final Champions League place, and with only 11 games of the season remaining, qualification via the league may already be beyond them.
United have won only four of their 11 matches since the turn of the year, but the Champions League provided a respite from their domestic woes during the European autumn.
The three-time continental champions qualified comfortably as Group A winners, winning four and drawing two of their six matches and enjoying handsome 4-2 and 5-0 victories over last year’s runners-up Bayer Leverkusen.
Nevertheless, with Arsenal and Manchester City having already lost their own last-16 first-leg matches, to Bayern Munich and Barcelona respectively, the tournament final in Lisbon on May 24 remains a long way off.
“Only one team can win it, and it’s very hard,” United striker Robin van Persie told Champions magazine.
“It’s a trophy many players don’t win; once, if you’re very lucky. You have a couple of players, who’ve won it more than once, but it’s a very special trophy, everyone wants to win every year.
“It seems to get harder every year to win, because the teams are getting better and better. So it’s always hard if you want something everyone wants.”
Dortmund jet to Zenit with injury, form worries
Borussia Dortmund, head to Zenit Saint Petersburg for their first-leg clash on the back of a shock Bundesliga defeat and injury worries.
Last year’s Champions League finalists Dortmund slumped to a shock 3-0 defeat to relegation-threatened Hamburg on Saturday and lost defensive midfielder Sven Bender for the next 10 weeks with an inflamed pelvis. Dortmund coach Jurgen Klopp has promised improvements in Saint Petersburg.
“Things will be very different there,” said Klopp.
Zenit certainly have the squad to trouble Dortmund with the likes of Brazilian striker Hulk and ex-Arsenal attacking midfielder Andrei Arshavin.
“Our team is fit and we are fully focused, a big plus for us is our great fighting spirit,” said Zenit’s midfielder Anatoliy Tymoshchuk.
Zenit’s director of sport Dietmar Beiersdorf was at Hamburg’s Imtech Arena to witness Dortmund’s debacle.
“Of course, Dortmund fill the favourite role,” said Beiersdorf.“The team has a very good reputation in Russia; it’ll be a great challenge for our club and our team.”
Published in The Express Tribune, February 25th, 2014.
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