Schalke and Manchester United will face off in the first game of their two-legged UEFA Champions League semi-final tie on Tuesday at the Veltins Arena for a spot in Europe's biggest club game of the season. The contest, certainly not seen as a battle of equals, pits a first time semi-finalist against a perennially consistent team, but despite that can very much go either way. Manchester United will certainly be favourites to play either one of the Spanish giants in the final after putting away domestic rivals Chelsea 3-1 in the quarters, but will have to be wary of the dangerous German side, who demolished current Champions League holders Inter Milan in the previous round 7-3. The meeting will be the first between the two sides, and it will be fascinating to see which team breaks, with Schalke boasting a 100% record at home, and the Red Devils yet to concede a goal on the road this season.
Schalke 04:
Gelsenkirchen will be the venue for Schalke's biggest home game of all time. The German side have defied all odds and played some brilliant football through the tournament to make it to the last four, and now arguably face their sternest test yet. A huge factor in Schalke's progress has been their home form, which though poor on the domestic circuit, has been brilliant in the Champions League, the German side having won each of five games at home with a combined score of 13-3. However, even with their success in Europe this season, a repeat of the same next season does not seem possible, with the team in 10th place in the Bundesliga. Their most recent game was a 1-0 loss at home against Kaiserslautern, with unhappy manager Ralf Rangnick saying that he will be ringing in the changes from that side when the club face Manchester United.
Champions League all-time highest scorer Raul Gonzales has been a huge influence for the side this year, and has a good record against Manchester United, having scored four goals in three games against the Red Devils in his time at Real Madrid. He has an explosive, young side around him, with Edu's finishing ability upfront, Jefferson Farfan's burst of pace and Jose Manuel Jurado's skill on the ball. The impetus for the side all season has been to attack, and they are unlikely to change that this Tuesday, leaving them susceptible at the back. They were dealt with a huge long-term blow this week when world-class goalkeeper Manuel Neuer announced that he wouldn't be extending his contract which expires in 2012, meaning that the club are almost surely going to offload him this off-season rather than see him leave on a Bosman when his contract expires.
The Royal Blues face German giants Bayern Munich at the weekend, following which they will travel to Manchester for the second leg of the tie, to be played at Old Trafford.
Manchester United:
The Red Devils are on course for a domestic title with their win at the weekend against Everton, and will now change their focus to the Champions League, where they are making their fourth semi-final appearance in the last five years. This kind of consistency over the last few years makes them favourites to win this tie and earn a spot in the finals of the competition to be played at Wembley. Manchester United have been solid if not spectacular in the Champions League this season, safely qualifying out of Group C, edging out French champions Olympique Marseille by the odd-goal and beating local rivals Chelsea both home and away to progress to the semis. They are still unbeaten in the competition, and go into the game having not conceded a goal on their travels.
Manchester United have not fared well against German opposition in the knockout rounds of the Champions League, having lost each of their four two-legged ties against Bundesliga teams, a curse they will want to reverse this time around. They are close to having a full-strength team, with players peaking at the right time, none more so than Mexican striker Javier Hernandez. It is a measure of how well Chicharito has done in his debut season that he is keeping the club's top goalscorer for the season Dimitar Berbatov out of the first team week in week out, and is justifying his place in the side, scoring yet another crucial winner at the weekend against Everton. However, with Sir Alex Ferguson sometimes preferring a more compact 4-5-1 formation against continental opposition, Wayne Rooney, who has had a huge resurgence himself, might lead the line on his own. It will also be crucial for United to keep tabs on the multi-faceted attack of the Schalke team, with a goal likely to come sometime, knowing the Royal Blues' weakness at the back.
The Red Devils, like Schalke, have a blockbuster weekend fixture away at Emirates against Arsenal to look forward to, where a win can seal the deal in terms of their Premier League ambitions. Following that will be their home leg against Schalke at Old Trafford.
Form Guide:
Schalke (LDWWW)
23 Apr '11 : Schalke 0 - 1 1. FC Kaiserslautern
16 Apr '11 : Werder Bremen 1 - 1 Schalke
13 Apr '11 : Schalke 2 - 1 Internazionale (Champions League)
9 Apr '11 : Schalke 1 - 0 VfL Wolfsburg
5 Apr '11 : Internazionale 2 - 5 Schalke (Champions League)
Manchester United (WDLWW)
23 Apr '11 : Manchester United 1 - 0 Everton
19 Apr '11 : Newcastle United 0 - 0 Manchester United
16 Apr '11 : Manchester City 1 - 0 Manchester United (FA Cup)
12 Apr '11 : Manchester United 2 - 1 Chelsea (Champions League)
9 Apr '11 : Manchester United 2 - 0 Fulham
Predicted Line-Ups:
Schalke (4-4-2) - Neuer, Howedes, Metzelder, Sarpei, Uchida, Matip, Papadopoulos, Jurado, Farfan, Raul, Edu
Manager Rangnick is likely to completely change his quartet of midfielders from their weekend's fixture, with Kyriakos Papadopoulos, Joel Matip, Jefferson Fanfan and Jose Jurado all expected to line-up against Manchester United. 71-time Champions League goalscorer Raul is likely to play off lead striker Edu, with full backs Atsuto Uchida and Hans Sarpei expected to bomb down the flanks at every given opportunity. Goalkeeper Manuel Neuer has made his intentions to leave clear, and though he will be played for the rest of the season, it will be interesting to see the reception he gets from the vociferous home fans.
Manchester United (4-4-2) - Van der Sar, Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra, O'Shea, Carrick, Giggs, Park, Valencia, Hernandez, Rooney
Manchester United rested skipper Nemanja Vidic in their weekend's fixture and will line up with either veteran Rio Ferdinand if the center-half is fit enough to play two games in the space of four days, or Chris Smalling, who has been deputising for the oft-injured Ferdinand throughout the season. Patrice Evra was also a second half substitute at the weekend, and will resume his duties at left-back, with Sir Alex to choose between John O'Shea and Rafael da Silva at right-back. Ryan Giggs has been playing in the center of midfield recently, and might play in that position over Paul Scholes and Anderson, with Michael Carrick expected to take one place in midfield. Big-match man Park Ji-Sung will again be involved in a high-profile game, while in attack, Wayne Rooney and Javier Hernandez have recently struck a good partnership and are almost certain to play in tandem, unless Sir Alex decides to play with a more defensive 4-5-1 formation. Dimitar Berbatov, who has been warming the bench recently, is ruled out of the trip with a groin injury, while Darren Fletcher is back in training, but this game is likely to come too early for the Scotsman.
Guru's Prediction: "MANCHESTER UNITED"
