AC Milan vs United

[David Gill]

Adam i don't agree with your line up, sorry.


This would be my line uo for wednesday night at the San Siro.

..........................................Van Der Sar..................................

O'shea* ..............Ferdinand................Brown*..............Heinzé


..............................Carrick................Fletcher.........................


Ronaldo................................Rooney.............................Giggs

................................................Smith*...........................................



*If Neville is fit then Neville will replace O'Shea
*If Vidic is fit then vicic will replace Brown. However if G.Neville is not fit and Vidic is, then Brown replaces O'shea because he did Ok versus Kaka on Tuesday.
*If Saha is fit then Saha has to start for me.

- I would leave Scholes on the bench for this one as i don't want him to miss another final. And i think that Fletcher and Carrcik played well against Roma.

-The three attacking AM's can interchange positions which will cause an attacknig threat on counter attacks.

-Should we be losing at half time then we will probably revert back to 4-3-3 with Rooney up-front.

- I'm pretty sure that Milan will get tired very quickly due to our fast and slick football. And i would put money on Fletcher to have another outstanding game. He is the key.

-I really do believe this is our year. So full speed ahead Athens! ;D

[Stew]

Can't see Fergie leaving Scholes out for a game of this importance, regardless of his yellow card.

[Buliwyf]

I'm soooooooooooooo relaxed for this one after the league is almost in our pocket and I think so will the players be.

Milan was an away team this season and Kaka is the main danger up front (predictable offense)! So if our defenders don't run amok as they did last week we will not only win but keep a clean sheet.

Scholes has to play because Fletcher doesn't have enough close-control for this tight midfield! The idea of him missing his second CL-final through suspension is very sickening indeed! And it would also be a blow for Rooney and Ronaldo!

[David Gill]

How old is Fletcher?
I'm telling you that in a maximum of two years he will be a world class CM or DM. He made me proud.
He looks more like a european than an english player.

[Vidic's Bitch !]

he's only 23,lots of time for improvement ;D

[Nailer]

davidgill said:

How old is Fletcher?
I'm telling you that in a maximum of two years he will be a world class CM or DM. He made me proud.
He looks more like a european than an english player.

He's scottish mate. ;D

I'm really looking forward to this, I think it'll be a 1-0 or a 2-1 win to United.
We need to attack them, sitting back will get us nowhere, and conceding would only put us in a poor position.
We need to go out there, play our normal football and try to score relatively early.
That'll leave them with everything to do and they'll have to throw everything at us, this is when we need to be resoulte, and just kill them off on the counter attack.

Im not sure about the line up though...
I'd like to play Fletcher, I think he deserves to start, and would really put in a good game.
But I dont like the idea of

--------Fletcher----Carrick---------
Ronaldo-----Scholes-----Giggs
-----------------Rooney-------------

Rooney's definitely not at his best as a lone striker, Smith can do the job far better.
So I think on the basis of not wanting to nullify Rooney, I'd play

----------------------------Van Der Sar---------------------------
----Brown-----Ferdinand-----------Heinze-----Evra--------
---Ronaldo-------Scholes-------Carrick--------Giggs----
---------------------Rooney------Smith----------------------

Come on United!

[RedArmy20]

fergie said to scholes that he should avoid sliding tackles to avoid champions league heart break or something...

[whitepele]

I know this is all history, but it doesn't look good. The thing is we are a great team, and I have no doubt have the ability to defeat AC, but as I said history does not favor us. I think we are to relaxed for this game. I have always said that the mental state of the fans in some way reflects the players, but I think we need to fear AC to some extent. NOT be daunted, but understand we have a huge task against a highly qualified team who have been in this situation much more than the current United side.

We can do this, but this is no time to lose our concentration! Beating Roma at home 7-1 was nice, but lets show the Italians our true colors. I know I'll be hoping for all three points, this is no time to be complacent! Treble here we come!!!

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Rossoneri undaunted by United

AC Milan will look to turn the clock back almost 50 years when Manchester United FC visit the Giuseppe Meazza defending a 3-2 lead in the UEFA Champions League semi-final.

• It was in May 1958 in the last four of the European Champion Clubs' Cup that Milan became the first and so far only team to overturn a first-leg deficit against United in Europe's élite competition. Then as now Milan lost a lead at Old Trafford and succumbed to a late goal, going down 2-1 to a Tommy Taylor strike on 80 minutes.

• Milan undid the damage on home soil, however, as Juan Schiaffino (2), Nils Liedholm and Giancarlo Danova earned the Rossoneri a handsome 4-0 victory. Save for that reverse, United have won 22 ties in the European Cup and UEFA Champions League - qualifiers included - in which they have held an advantage from the first leg.

• United hold the upper hand this time thanks to Wayne Rooney's added-time winner in a thrilling first leg. Milan appeared in control at the interval at Old Trafford as they responded to Cristiano Ronaldo's early header with two goals from Kaká. However, Rooney made it 2-2 on 59 minutes before flashing the ball past Dida for a second time moments from the end.

• United are within one victory of a century of wins in the European Cup, including qualifying, a feat that has only been achieved by three other clubs. Real Madrid CF have been successful 173 times in Europe's premier club competition, followed by FC Bayern München (115) and semi-final rivals Milan (106).

• In 50 years of European competition, United have surrendered a winning position only four times, that 1958 loss to Milan included. The most recent instance was in the 1984/85 UEFA Cup quarter-finals against Székesfehérvári Videoton SC. Following a 1-0 home win they were then beaten by the same scoreline in Hungary before bowing out 5-4 on penalties.

• For their part, Milan have faced a first-leg deficit six times before in Europe's élite competition and won through on half of those occasions. Their most recent victory in these circumstances was in the 1968/69 first round where they overcame Malmö FF 4-1 on home soil after a 2-1 loss in Sweden.

• Their most recent defeat, meanwhile, was in last season's semi-final against FC Barcelona where they went down 1-0 at home before a goalless draw at the Camp Nou.

• The last time Milan retrieved a first-leg loss in any European club competition came in their UEFA Cup quarter-final against Hapoel Tel-Aviv FC in March 2002. After a 1-0 away reverse, Milan triumphed 2-0 at San Siro through a Rui Costa strike and Shimon Gershon's own goal.

• Milan have a 100 per cent record against United in two-legged contests. Following that first confrontation in the 1957/58 European Cup semi-final, the sides met again at the semi-final stage in 1968/69. Milan won 2-1 on aggregate, following up a 2-0 home success with a 1-0 defeat in Manchester, where present-day United director Sir Bobby Charlton found the net.

• The Rossoneri recorded 1-0 victories both at home and away in the teams' first knockout round encounter in 2004/05, Hernán Crespo claiming the only goal on both occasions.

• The teams for the second leg of that tie in Milan on 8 March 2005 were:
Milan: Dida, Cafu, Nesta, Stam, Maldini, Gattuso (Costacurta 88), Pirlo, Seedorf, Rui Costa (Dhorasoo 85), Kaká, Crespo (Ambrosini 78).
United: Howard, Brown (Smith 85), Ferdinand, Silvestre, Heinze, Ronaldo, Keane, Scholes, Rooney, Giggs (Fortune 57), Van Nistelrooy.

• Milan have never lost at home to English opposition, recording six wins and five draws in eleven matches.

• Carlo Ancelotti's side have had mixed fortunes at home in the UEFA Champions League this season. In the group stage they defeated AEK Athens FC 3-0 and RSC Anderlecht 4-1 before losing 2-0 to LOSC Lille Métropole with qualification already assured. In the first knockout round they beat Celtic FC 1-0 through Kaká's extra-time goal, thus securing an aggregate win by the same scoreline. Then in the quarter-finals they were held 2-2 at home by FC Bayern München before a 2-0 away success.

• United have lost three of five away games in their 2006/07 campaign. In the group stage they beat SL Benfica 1-0 in September but went down by the same score at Celtic FC and FC København. Ryan Giggs earned them a 1-0 win at Lille in the first knockout round – setting them on the path to a 2-0 aggregate success – while in the quarter-finals, they succumbed 2-1 at AS Roma but made amends in spectacular fashion with a 7-1 home triumph.

• That defeat at Roma was United's ninth in 12 visits to Italy. They have won only twice away to Serie A opposition but their first success was against a Juventus side under Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti in the 1999 UEFA Champions League semi-final. Famously United trailed 2-0 to two goals from Filippo Inzaghi – now a Milan player - before replying through efforts from Roy Keane, Dwight Yorke and Andy Cole to triumph 3-2 on the night and 4-3 overall.

• Milan are aiming to reach their tenth European Cup final and United their third. The Italian team's most recent final appearance was two years ago, where they lost to Liverpool FC on penalties after a 3-3 draw in Istanbul. It was in 1999, meanwhile, that United were last in the final, overcoming FC Bayern München 2-1 in Barcelona.

• Overall Milan have previously been semi-finalists eleven times in this competition and only twice have they failed to go on to the final – losing to Real Madrid CF in 1955/56 and to FC Barcelona last season. Milan reached the 1992/93 final direct from the group stage.

• United's record at this stage of Europe's élite competition is less impressive, their eight previous semi-finals bringing just two victories. The most recent of their six semi-final losses came five years ago when they went down on away goals to Bayer 04 Leverkusen.

• Milan would play another Premiership team if they reached the final. Besides their 2005 defeat by Liverpool, they have won their two other UEFA finals against English clubs. They defeated Leeds United AFC 1-0 in the 1972/73 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup final and Arsenal FC 2-0 on aggregate in the 1994 UEFA Super Cup, played in February 1995.

• United goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar played in Serie A between 1999 and 2001 with Juventus, while Mikaël Silvestre, out for the season with a shoulder injury, spent the 1998/99 campaign at Inter. His fellow French defender Patrice Evra also played in Italy in the late 1990s for Marsala Calcio and Monza Calcio but never in the top flight.

• The winners will face either Chelsea FC or Liverpool in the final on 23 May in Athens and will be designated as the home team.

[sahahahaha]

We could have gone into this game with Chelsea on level points with us and favourites for the league. As it is we have one hand on the prem title and that takes all the epreassure off. The players should just enjoy it.



Scholes has to play though, you can't leave him out because he might get booked, because if we leave him out we might not get there. He just has to be carefull, let flecther do the donkey work

[canadianRed]

sahahahaha said:

We could have gone into this game with Chelsea on level points with us and favourites for the league. As it is we have one hand on the prem title and that takes all the epreassure off. The players should just enjoy it.



Scholes has to play though, you can't leave him out because he might get booked, because if we leave him out we might not get there. He just has to be carefull, let flecther do the donkey work

Exactly Leave Fletch in there to do all the dirty work. He's willing and as shown lately capable of doin it quite well. I don't want to see Scholes attempting any tackles that night! Stay on your feet Scholesy!

[RedArmy20]

scholes wouldnt get himself a yellow card, he has already missed a cl final, he doesnt want to miss another if we are to go through...come on!

[richt]

Stand up and fight for it United! 90 minutes, no regrets or doubts. We have to make it happen and I'm sure we will. Forza Mancunia!

[matkaman]

I see Gattuso is fit to play ,Scholes an Carrick need to be on top form.........

[richt]

matkaman said:

I see Gattuso is fit to play ,Scholes an Carrick need to be on top form.........

And they will be, how fit is Mr. G Gattuso Esquire exactly?

[Carlito's Way]

-----------------VDS------------------
O'Shea-Ferdinand-Brown-Heinze
--------Fletcher----Carrick---------
Ronaldo-----Scholes-----Giggs
-----------------Rooney-------------

I'd be very happy with that lineup and confident that we would win. If Ferdinand isn't fit I would play Heinze at CB and K Rich at LB. I'm starting to get some confidence in the lad again.