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Champions League - Who's Going to Moscow?

Barca in Turmoil as United Stroll
Of the two Champions League semi-finals, there is no doubt that the Barcelona versus Manchester United games are the more intriguing for the neutrals.

Liverpool versus Chelsea is an all English affair with its own history at this stage and confusion surrounds the back room squabbles of both clubs but it fails to excite like the other tie.

The list of players who could be on show when Barca and United clash is reason alone to keep an eye out for it but there are so many intriguing subplots to the games that it is by far the bigger match to preview.

The teams' contrasting form in their respective leagues is the first point worth considering. Manchester United currently sit top of the English Premier and although they face a tricky trip to Stamford Bridge on the Saturday following their trip to Spain, it looks as though the Red Devils will be claiming their 10th Premier League title and their 17th top league triumph in total.

Barcelona have only themselves to blame for the manner in which they trail Real Madrid in La Liga. The form of Madrid has been surprisingly patchy which means that Barcelona’s has been horrific with the amount of home draws seriously derailing their efforts.

Domestic form would indicate that United will triumph convincingly in the tie but does the fact that Barcelona’s best chance of silverware lie with the Champions League mean they will be more up for it?

Ordinarily you would say yes but there appears to be something lacking with the Barcelona team at the moment and although a victory in Moscow in May seems to be the only way for Frank Rijkaard to keep his job, it is debatable whether he wants to remain in position at the Camp Nou.

There appears to be a strong split in the Barcelona camp with accusations that players like Ronaldinho and Deco are not seriously injured but are merely being excluded from the team for a lack of effort and discipline.

Deco has responded angrily to these claims and threatened to take legal action against anyone who suggests this but forgive us for not immediately taking the word of a man who is prone to falling over a blade of grass if it offers him team an advantage.

Managerial Merry-Go-Round
With this in mind, perhaps Rijkaard will not be overly motivated to mastermind his team to a triumph and with talk already linking the Dutchman with the job at Chelsea, perhaps his mind may be on other avenues.

So three out of the four semi-finalists are in the curious position of having serious question marks over the long-term future of their managers but this cannot be levelled at Manchester United. With over 20 years in the Old Trafford hot seat, there will be a vast number of United fans who have never experienced another manager in charge and there is still a lot driving Alex Ferguson.

Managerial Consistency in Manchester
A winner of the European Cup Winners Cup with Aberdeen and Manchester United, Ferguson finally clinched glory in the big cup in that amazing final in Barcelona against Bayern Munich. Those two late goals ensured that Ferguson's name would be listed alongside Sir Matt Busby as being able to bring the European Cup to Manchester but there are those who say that Ferguson should have had more success in football premier competition.

The foreigner rule lessened United’s impact in the tournament in the early 1990s but so many weak knock outs since their last win has raised doubts over the teams overall quality.

After all, Ferguson still ranks behind Brian Clough when it comes to winning the major European trophy and no doubt he will want to set this right. Ferguson, being fully aware of the bragging rights between Liverpool and Manchester, will also want to edge United closer to Liverpool's five triumphs. Ferguson may still have the small matter of clinching the domestic title but he will definitely be fully motivated to getting his team to Moscow in May.

The current assistant manager of Manchester United is Carlos Queiroz and his former role of manager of Real Madrid will add a further twist to the tie. Although Queiroz did not have the best record of Madrid’s managers in recent times, he will still have an element of rivalry with Barcelona and no doubt he will be equally keen to see his team triumph.

How Much Was That Again???
Talk of Madrid brings us to the speculation that they are considering placing a £100 million bid for United's Christiano Ronaldo. Whatever you feel about that sort of price tag (yes, it is ludicrous) there is no doubt that Ronaldo is one of the best in the world at the moment and all eyes will be on his performance in Spain. A disappointing show in last years semi-final versus Milan cast some doubt over his ability in big games but the step up in class this season by Ronaldo has went some way to quietening these fears. If Ronaldo wants to make it at Madrid, he will need to be able to go to places like the Camp Nou and play his normal game.

Aside from Kaka, the only other player mentioned in the same breath as Ronaldo is Lionel Messi and it looks as though he has shaken off an injury sustained against Glasgow Celtic and should be available for the semi. Every football fan wants to see the best players and the thought of Ronaldo and Messi on the same park is sure to have millions tuning in.

Even in an injury ravaged season, the form of Messi has been so good that there is a strong chance that Thierry Henry will not feature from the start in these matches. This should have been Henry's chance to return to England and prove his footballing skills yet again but the Frenchman has suffered a torrid time in Barcelona and there are indications he may be on his way out in the summer. If so, it will have been an expensive lesson for Barcelona but the club can console themselves with the fact that at least they paid less for Henry than Tottenham Hotspur paid for Darren Bent!

With so many interesting sub-plots to the tie it can only be hoped that both teams are able to play their natural free-flowing style of football, because if they do, then football fans are in for a treat.

By Andrew Reilly

for The Silver Circle at www.footballtip.co.uk

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