This is the big one. Manchester
United have travelled to Spain to
face Real Madrid at the Santiago
Bernabeu stadium with just one
player, Paul Scholes, unable to
make the trip due to injury. Phil Jones and Jonny Evans have
both been passed fit, so United
have the option of asking one of
them to do a man marking job
on Cristiano Ronaldo, the Madrid
talisman. After his fantastic performances
against Gareth Bale and
Marouane Fellaini, my bet is that
Ferguson asks Jones to keep the
Portuguese striker quiet. If he
can do that then United have won half the battle. With Vidic
available, the captain is likely to
partner Ferdinand at the back,
as nights like these call for
experience as much as ability. There should be no surprises up
front, with the dream team of
Rooney and van Persie bound to
start. The fact that Rooney can
drop deep and help out the
midfield, as well as link with the Dutch striker gives United
attacking and defensive
strength. Ashley Young could
come straight back into the side
to offer extra pace. Mourinho has a concern about
his midfield general Xabi Alonso,
but it looks like he will risk him.
Madrid have lots of attacking
flair, but Alonso keeps them
under control from the middle. Without him they could be very
susceptible to United's talented
team.