Terrace Talk

Rain soaked and weary, United seemed as if they were beaten before they had even made a single pass. It must have been miserable getting on that plane, back to Manchester and in retrospect I can’t say time has healed the wounds of last April. All the papers went on at length how decidedly United were beaten and outclassed by a Milan side led by Kaka and an almost divine right to advance. It was all too much to bear as a United fan, and I did everything I could to ignore the media coverage. It’s hard to imagine how much worse it must have been for the players and the manager who have hungered for European glory for a decade.

It will be nine years this May, that Ole Gunnar Solskjaer put the ball in the German’s net. That’s a long time for a team that has dominated domestically and still had time to rebuild. It’s quite possible that this contrast between European failure and British dominance has been the impetus for the burning desire in this United side. The tragedy at the San Siro only makes the fever that much more acute, particularly for Sir Alex Ferguson who will not want to wait a decade to lift the European trophy once more. With Rio Ferdinand saying “The disappointment of going out last season has stayed in people’s minds,” it is clear that United do not lack the motivation to pass a French team that has plenty of flaws.

There are a series of rumblings from the Lyon terraces and a number of rumors centered around Karim Benzema who lived up to the hype in United’s away fixture. As gifted as he may be, he has yet to learn to control his ego and was reported to have complained about being played on the left in recent league matches. Furthermore, he refused to shake hands with colleague Hatem Ben Arfa when substituted at Lille on the weekend. There are clearly issues that have been recognized by the manager Alain Perrin who said “These two players have already declared that they are not the best friends in the world. I will speak to them, but these are matters between men. They are not linked to a problem in the game. It’s their private life, their personal life.” We shouldn’t forget that in 1999 Teddy Sheringham and Andy Cole refused to speak to each other and they ended up lifting the trophy on May 26th. Whatever the issues, whether real or trivial, United have the class to finish off Lyon regardless of their young starlets. There is no greater pacifier of resentment, irritation and egos than a win.

Sir Alex Ferguson rested many of his players over the weekend, with Rooney and Ronaldo only contributing 15 minutes each to the decimation of Fulham on Saturday. Ryan Giggs will be missing due to a thigh injury, however it seems the rest of the squad will be fully fit. I will not read too much into United’s recent domestic form since the opponents have been truly miserable. However, confidence must be high knowing that they carry a nine game European home winning streak into Old Trafford. I can’t look at Rooney and particularly Ronaldo, without demanding a performance to remember. The San Siro debacle left an incredibly bitter taste in the mouth of fans that will not go away with a simple progression to the quarter-finals. Cristiano Ronaldo in particular was disappointing last year and will have to prove his class if he truly has aspirations of being crowned the world’s best.

While United’s attack will need to be in full force, the defense is what will help United advance to the next round. Nemanja Vidic was rested against Fulham, while Patrice Evra is particularly aware of what Lyon will bring to Manchester. “If we go out of the Champions League on Tuesday it would be a massive blow for the club — it would be catastrophic,” defender Patrice Evra said. “I have a big respect for Lyon because they are a good team. As a Frenchman, I am fully aware of their qualities.” United should heed his words, but neither should they hesitate turning the screw on a French side that is weaker in almost every position than United. As fans we’ve heard plenty from the players over the last decade. It’s time for more action and less words. It’s time to render AC Milan meaningless; it’s time to get our trophy back.