LONDON • Lionel Messi has scored 22 Champions League goals in 30 appearances against English teams - more than any other player in the history of the competition.
But Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has no plans to man-mark the Barcelona talisman in the first leg of their quarter-final tie today, despite admitting he "will go down in history as one of the best ever".
At his pre-match press conference yesterday, he said: "Messi will be difficult to stop but never impossible, it's not like Messi against Manchester United, (there's also Luis) Suarez, (Philippe) Coutinho, (Arturo) Vidal, so many good players. We can't focus on one, we have to focus on (all) 11 of them.
"What kind of plan can you have to stop one of the best in the world? This season we (have already) played against (Cristiano) Ronaldo and (Kylian) Mbappe, and now Messi. They're challenges I relish, I say bring it on."
Although this is the first time Solskjaer will face the 31-year-old and his team as a coach, there is someone who has a wealth of experience trying to shackle the Argentina captain and whose experience he has drawn upon - his mentor Alex Ferguson.
Revealing he had tapped the former United managerial great's inside knowledge, he said: "Of course, I've spoken with the gaffer since the draw was made but no details... You look at what you'll do against them and we're ready."
While Solskjaer is fully aware "we have to defend well against them", he also urged the Old Trafford faithful to come out in droves as "we will need the crowd in a game like this".
Barcelona v Man United: Epic Champions League battles
2011: FINAL, WEMBLEY
This was the last time the two European football juggernauts met in a competitive fixture.
It was, however, far from a tight contest as United were overrun in midfield while Lionel Messi led their defence on a merry run as Barcelona ran out 3-1 winners.
This was tiki-taka football at its peak, with Pep Guardiola lifting his second European Cup as a manager.
2009: FINAL, STADIO OLIMPICO
While United were ultimately outplayed in the 2-0 loss, they departed Rome asking life's cruellest question - what if?
Despite a blistering start, during which they were on top, they failed to score before their defence gave away a soft opener to Samuel Eto'o.
The Red Devils could only rue Darren Fletcher's ban that left Michael Carrick isolated in midfield against Xavi Hernandez and Andres Iniesta, with the former eventually supplying Messi's headed goal.
2008: SEMI-FINAL 2ND LEG, OLD TRAFFORD
Former United manager Alex Ferguson and his assistant Carlos Queiroz were so determined to restrict the away side's "passing carousel" that they went through an unprecedented level of tactical preparation in training.
The attention to detail worked as they restricted Barcelona to few chances and no goals across the two legs, reaching their first Champions League final since 1999 thanks to Paul Scholes' howitzer on a night of raw emotion.
It was probably, across both legs, their most negative performance in Ferguson's 26 years at the club, but the end justified the means, with United going on to claim their third European Cup.
THE GUARDIAN
The Norwegian said: "Hopefully, a bit of rain will make for a special evening. Confidence is high. The result, what we did against Paris Saint-Germain, and how we have climbed the table, clawing back points.
"The players have given themselves and the supporters great belief. I can feel the tension, the excitement. The Champions League is possible and we can go on to win it. There will have to be luck and margins, we must perform at the best."
But even if the Red Devils fail to match the Catalan giants' "quality" at home, the tie - their first meeting since the 2011 Champions League final - is "not going to be decided until we play 90 minutes in the Nou Camp".
Backing midfielder Paul Pogba to "perform tomorrow as his job is to be the creator and to drive us forward", Solskjaer added: "We know we can't give fouls away, look how many goals Messi has scored from free kicks outside the area (seven this season), we have to be careful.
"(But) the Champions League throws up so many strange results, we just have to make sure we perform to our best and have a result to take over to Barcelona."
The 46-year-old also touched on Barcelona defender Gerard Pique's first return to his "second home" of Manchester since leaving the club in 2008, before jokingly drawing a parallel with their age gap.
He said: "Gerard, I used to play with him. He came as a young boy (Pique is now 32), we had a lot of belief in him.
"He was maybe unlucky, he came here when (Nemanja) Vidic and Rio (Ferdinand) played here so he didn't get the chances he probably deserved.
"It will be nice to meet him again. Hopefully, we can make him feel old, and not me young."
United also received a boost after it was revealed forward Marcus Rashford would likely be fit, although midfielder Nemanja Matic remains a doubt.
REUTERS
MANCHESTER UNITED V BARCELONA
Singtel TV Ch110 & StarHub Ch214, tomorrow, 2.55am
MADRID: Spain's World Cup winning captain Iker Casillas, 37, suffered a heart attack while training with his Portuguese club Porto on Wednesday, but later tweeted from hospital to say he was
Iker Casillas responds after Porto heart attack scare
EDWARDS — An unusual amount of mountain lion sightings have been taking place in Edwards, and residents have been warned to stay on the lookout. According to a press release from Colorado Parks and Wildlife, up to 10 mountain lions might be in the area. Colorado Parks and Wildlife officials
England Young Lions continue preparations for Euro U21 finals
PARIS: Edinson Cavani missed a stoppage-time penalty as Paris St Germain continued their stuttering end to the season with a 1-1 Ligue 1 draw at home to Nice, with Neymar notching his 50th goal
Soccer: Neymar hits half-century as PSG are held by Nice
Barcelona rues missed chances in Clasico draw vs. Real Madrid. Neymar, Andres Iniesta and Lionel Messi all missed opportunities to make it 2-0. Madrid pushed for the equalizer in the last 10
Mutebi rues missed chance to go seven clear after Vipers draw
PSG's Dani Alves house burgled during match - L'Equipe. msn back to msn home sport. powered by Microsoft News. Football Formula 1 Cricket Rugby Tennis
Liverpool forward Roberto Firmino has already been ruled out of the second leg against Barcelona. The problems are adding up for manager Jurgen Klopp as Roberto Firmino, who tore a muscle last
Official Liverpool FC Store | Liverpool FC Ball
AD
store.liverpoolfc.com/ball
Report Ad
Browse Our Wide Range Of Exclusive Liverpool FC Souvenirs. Shop Online Now.
The Public Law titled the Veterans Opportunity to Work (VOW) to Hire Heroes Act of 2011 has charged VA, DOL, and DOD with expanding upon the functions and benefits available to unemployed Veterans, as well as create a more seamless transition for Service members. Congress will request metrics to evaluate the success of the VOW Act.
Sudan Pro-Democracy Groups Vow to Continue Protests After
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola revealed he has been impressed by the impact Brendan Rodgers has made at Leicester City since his arrival from Celtic in February. The Foxes have won five of their eight league games under Rodgers since he took over from Claude Puel, including a 3-0 victory over Arsenal last time out, […]
Everton Have Impressed Me - Pep Guardiola Warns of Tough Test
Spurs now within six points of Premier League leaders Liverpool. Fatigue may yet still derail Tottenham's bid to win a first trophy under Pochettino. Everton struck first in a wildly open contest
Spurs shine to hit Everton for six - Afriupdate
Klopp hails 'best night' of his life after ending final hex the UEFA Champions League final football match between Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur at the Wanda Metropolitano Stadium in Madrid
Football: Klopp hails 'best night' of his life after ending
Pep Guardiola has categorically denied reports suggesting that he is set to leave Manchester City and become the manager of Juventus this summer. Reports in Italy on Friday suggested that
Serie A: Juventus deny any interest in Guardiola
Croatia fixtures tab is showing last 100 handball matches with statistics and win/lose icons. There are also all Croatia scheduled matches that they are going to play in the future. Croatia performance & form graph is SofaScore Handball livescore unique algorithm that we are generating from last 10 matches, statistics, detailed analysis and our
Shootout Sunday: Croatia Follows Russia's Lead and Wins on
2018/19 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Circuit will continue with its stops making a stop at Harrah's New Orleans running a series of exciting events from the 9th till 20th May, 2019.
Dustin Stewart Leads 8 in WSOPC Harrah's New Orleans Main
The magic of the SSE Women's FA Cup is still well and truly alive for Burnley FC Ladies after the history-makers beat Premier North side Stoke City to reach the third round of the competition. Clarets boss Matthew Bee now believes that anything is possible and a lucrative tie against a Super
FA Cup magic alive and well after a weekend full of upsets
Moscow city authorities have begun using comics with characters from Russian fairytales to explain to migrants how they should behave. They say a 100-page guide is needed to "maintain a positive
watch soccer games online free streaming live
watch uefa champions league live streaming youtube
watch champions league live streaming live free
watch soccer live streaming zimbabwe
watch coppa america live streaming ronaldo7
watch coppa america live streaming online free
watch champions league live streaming live
watch champions league final online free live streaming
watch soccer live streaming juventus
watch live english premier league online free streaming
watch bangladesh premier league live streaming online free
watch premier league live streaming live
watch soccer live streaming xfinity
watch champions league soccer live streaming
watch soccer live streaming xbox
watch champions league live streaming cricfree
watch barclays premier league online live streaming
watch coppa america live streaming usa
watch champions league live streaming xbox
watch coppa america live streaming mexico
watch usa soccer live stream online
watch champions league soccer live streaming
watch uefa champions league live streaming sportek
how to watch soccer live streaming free
watch coppa america live streaming xbox one
watch soccer online free streaming live canada
watch coppa america live streaming match
watch soccer live streaming kenya vs ethiopia
live ipl live streaming- watch indian premier league 2013 online
watch soccer online free streaming live manchester united
watch coppa america live streaming youtube
watch coppa america live streaming mobile
watch coppa america live streaming canada
how to watch uefa champions league live streaming
watch premier league live streaming vk
watch bangladesh premier league live streaming free
watch coppa america live streaming pc
watch everton vs tottenham live soccer streaming
watch soccer online free streaming live india
watch premier league live streaming live free
watch soccer games live stream free
super soccer tv live streaming indonesia
watch champions league live streaming canada
watch soccer online free streaming live p2p
watch soccer games live stream free app
watch champions league live streaming pakistan
how to watch premier league live streaming
watch coppa america live streaming hd
watch tamil nadu premier league live streaming
watch premier league live in stream
watch soccer live live football streaming cr7
watch champions league simulcast live stream
where to watch premier league live streaming
watch coppa america live streaming sctv
watch soccer live streaming qatar
watch english premier league live streaming hd
watch live streaming soccer manchester united
watch soccer online free streaming live in english
watch sky sports premier league live streaming
watch premier league darts live stream
watch coppa america live streaming putlockers
watch live premier league football streaming online for free
watch indian premier league live stream online
watch soccer live streaming qatar vs philippines
watch hd soccer live streaming free
watch uefa champions league draw live streaming
watch champions league live streaming vk
watch champions league live streaming now tv
watch soccer online free streaming live bbc
watch coppa america live streaming zee5
watch soccer aid live stream online
watch soccer am live stream
watch live soccer game today
watch premier league live streaming yify
watch premier league live streaming zee tv
watch coppa america live streaming direct
watch epl live streaming free no sign up
watch champions league live streaming manchester united
watch arsenal southampton premier league live stream
super soccer tv live streaming napoli vs juventus
watch the champions league live stream
watch barclays premier league live streaming online free
watch soccer live football streaming - ronaldo7.net
watch premier league stream reddit
watch english premier league live streaming online
watch champions league live streaming bein sport
watch champions league live streaming juventus
watch coppa america live streaming juventus vs manchester united
watch uefa champions league final live streaming free online
watch karnataka premier league live streaming
watch soccer online free live streaming livetv ru
live tv soccer live stream - live3s.com
watch us soccer live stream
watch champions league live streaming zee5
watch champions league live streaming malaysia
watch premier league live streaming juventus
watch live streaming of premier league football
soccer tv live football streaming garuda select
watch champions league live streaming video
watch coppa america live streaming live free
watch coppa america live streaming xbox
watch coppa america live streaming now
watch champions league live streaming xbox one
watch champions league online free live streaming hd
watch champions league final live streaming
watch indian premier league live streaming
free watch champions league live streaming
watch soccer online free streaming live without registration
super soccer tv live streaming piala dunia
watch soccer online free streaming live app
watch live stream soccer games online free
where to watch champions league live streaming
watch premier league live streaming vf
watch soccer online free streaming live first row
watch coppa america live streaming qatar
watch coppa america live streaming india vs england
watch champions league live streaming match
watch premier league live stream reddit
watch soccer saturday live stream
cpl 2018 live streaming watch caribbean premier league t20 2018
watch soccer live streaming xbox one
watch soccer live stream app
watch soccer am online live streaming
watch iceland soccer live stream
watch coppa america live streaming online
watch premier league live streaming xbox
watch coppa america live streaming total sportek
watch live soccer stream android
watch coppa america live streaming rcti
watch soccer live streaming mobile
watch uefa champions league draw live streaming free online
watch premier league games live stream
watch coppa america live streaming tv
watch champions league draw live stream total sportek
watch live streaming soccer world cup
watch coppa america live streaming bola
watch champions league live streaming xfinity
watch coppa america live streaming bt sport
watch soccer online free streaming live arabic
watch premier league live streaming zimbabwe
watch coppa america live streaming reddit
watch soccer live streaming reddit
watch champions league live streaming espn
watch uefa champions league quarter final draw live streaming
#bayernmunich #messi #afcnews #uefanationsleague #comics #neymar #footballstreaming #fcbarcelona #nationsleague #boxing #nikesoccer #Vip45 #liverpool #coyg #leicestercity #Celtic #freekickerz #copaamerica #Fcb #ignoranza #premierleague #footballfans #soccer #soccermemes #pagani #Suarez #commento #fut #thebeatles #chocolatecoffee #satira #livestreaming #manchesterunited #Barcelona #oasisandbeatles #beatifulgame #ballondor #rugby #henderson #valcea #elcasico #kroenkeout #arsenalnews #JUVENTUS #livesports #myfootballuniverse #MSport #liverpool #BMW #league2 #goodday #leomessi #oasisengland #seriea #streamingbolaid #4Series #bestshishacafedubai #adidasslipon #bayern #conference #klopp #manchestercity
No comments:
Post a Comment