Real Madrid vs Manchester United – A match to match 2003

It is arguably the biggest fixture this month, and as Jose Mourinho aptly put it, “It’s the match the world is waiting for.” When the two most successful clubs on the planet lock horns in the UEFA Champions League (Round of 16), everything else (including sleep/Valentine’s Day) takes a back seat. This fixture has been spiced up further, since its CR7’s first game against his former club after leaving the Theater of Dreams 3 and a half seasons ago. The two teams last met in the 2002-03 season (in the Quarters), and they gave us a humdinger of a tie fraught with goals (Madrid won the 1^st leg 3-1 and United took the second 4-3, but Madrid progressed 6-5 on aggregate). The whole of the football fraternity will hope for an encounter that matches the sky high standards set by its predecessor.

With this in mind, let us now make an attempt to analyse how the 2 teams match up to each other.

Real Madrid

Probable XI

———————————————–Diego Lopez———————————————–

—————Arbeloa————–Pepe—————Ramos———————Coentrao———————–

————————–Xabi Alonso———————Khedira————————————

—-Ozil——————————————————————————–Ronaldo————————-

——————————–Benzema—————-Higuain———————————-

Madrid would definitely look to Ronaldo to lead them from the front and bring down United’s shaky defense with his speed and precision. Madrid have a lot of firepower and we can expect them to come hard at a United defense whose frailty has only been all too well documented. (Mourinho will, however, miss the services of Angel di Maria on the wing, as the talismanic winger has been ruled out of both legs of this tie with a thigh strain.)

Their defense (and midfield) will be bolstered with the return of Pepe and Xabi Alonso. The biggest loss for Real will be that of their captain and keeper, Iker Casillas. Although Diego Lopez is an able deputy with loads of experience, the Spanish No.1 is simply irreplaceable. Ramos and Pepe will have to be on their toes throughout the game as United have an equally venomous attack that can strike them down in a flash. Coentrao has improved by leaps and bounds since coming to Madrid, and the Portuguese full back will look to create problems for Rafael by combining with Ronaldo down the left. All said and done, it’s going to be Mourinho’s biggest challenge yet.

Manchester United:

Probable XI

————————————————–De Gea———————————————————-

———–Rafael—————–Rio Ferdinand———-Vidic——————-Evra——————————–

——————————Phil Jones————————-Carrick————————————————

————————————————–Rooney——————————————————

—Valencia—————————————————————–Welbeck———————

————————————————–Van Persie————————————————-

United go into this game on a high, having extended their lead at the top of the table to 12 points. The Rooney-RVP combine will make life difficult for Ramos and company with their off the ball movement and incisive play. Sir Alex will be aware of the dangers posed by the loaded Madrid attack, and it’s likely that he will deploy Rooney deeper than usual in order to add more muscle to the midfield. United will look to soak up the pressure and hit Madrid on the counter (and get that crucial away goal).

Phil Jones will, in all likelihood, be assigned the task of shadowing Cristiano and double teaming him (along with Rafael) when he’s on the ball. Jones played similar roles to perfection against Tottenham and Everton, where he kept Bale and Fellaini under wraps for a good part of the game. The time tested pairing of Ferdinand and Vidic is expected to control proceedings at the back, and Ferdinand will want to put the ghosts of 2003 to rest with a commanding display at the Bernebeu. Valencia and Welbeck will provide width to the play so as to try and stretch Real’s defense. Valencia’s work rate will come in handy down the right, & he will play an important role in checking the runs of Coentrao. Overall, it’s going to be a test of United’s patience and resilience at the back and the effectiveness of their counter attacks.

All in all, it’s going to be a cracker of a game with end to end stuff and, hopefully for the fans, bucket-loads of goals. So sit back, watch, relax and rest for this is football at its best. Game On!