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    MANCHESTER UNITED :: Champion of Europe ::

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    Post by king_diamond Sat 23 May 2009, 4:14 am

    R - Reserves. Play them at Hull. In fact, f*** the reserves, put the under fives out. No risk. f*** everybody else, especially Newcastle. We owe no cunt nothing. We missed a chance to dangle West Ham's kurang pandai cockney napper down the bog 2 years ago and then flush it repeatedly, so we shouldn't miss the same chance again. Think of Shearer's smug monkey nut swede after the 5th goal in 96, and then tell me you don't want to hear him pleading for us to stop flushing. Fergie's responsibility is to us, not to other managers.
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    Post by king_diamond Sat 23 May 2009, 4:14 am

    S - Soporific. Some of the football this season if we're being honest. You know you are good when you can win the league without even playing well for most of it. At times we seemed to have swapped mojos with Liverpool, as they swashbuckled teams into submission and we ground out the results. Even though 'mojo' is the worst word in the world and I can't believe I just used it.
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    Post by king_diamond Sat 23 May 2009, 4:14 am

    T - Tottenham. Every year there is a game like this in the run in that all but confirms the eventual champions. Arsenal v Liverpool in 2004. Chelsea v West Ham in 2006. United v Everton in 2007. A day when the momentum builds to an extent that it wont be stopped. This year it was Tottenham at home. Or was it Villa? Who cares. Let's just get this over with.
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    Post by king_diamond Sat 23 May 2009, 4:15 am

    U - Unbeaten run from November - March. The bedrock of our title success. Can you tell I'm starting to get piss off doing this now or what?
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    Post by king_diamond Sat 23 May 2009, 4:15 am

    V - Vidic. United's best performer in 2008/09 without doubt and the real player of the year. SOCCER!
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    Post by king_diamond Sat 23 May 2009, 4:15 am

    W - West Ham. 9th February. Liverpool come from 2 - 1 down to win 3 - 2 the day before. United have a fer of a trip to Upton Park - graveyard of many a title challenge in the past. Ryan Giggs shoves their bubbles up their holes. Which, if you think about it, isn't that easy a thing to do. Actually sack Vidic, if the ability to shove Fairy liquid bubbles up a tight arsehole with your left foot doesn't grant you Player of the Year status then what does?


    Last edited by king_diamond on Sat 23 May 2009, 4:20 am; edited 1 time in total
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    Post by king_diamond Sat 23 May 2009, 4:15 am

    X - X Rated. Well, its always either X-Ray or X-Rated when you get to X in these types of lists, so pick something X-Rated and off before you require an X-Ray. Trust me, I'm hard as nails and if there's one thing that blows my top its people who refuse to adhere to the rules of A- Z lists.
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    Post by king_diamond Sat 23 May 2009, 4:17 am

    Subscriptions
    By UWS - 26/11/2008 11:38

    United We Stand is published monthly during the football season. You can pay for a one year, ten issue, subscription online using Paypal. Please make the payment to 'uwsmag@yahoo.co.uk' The costs are £24.50 for UK, £29 for ROI and Europe, £33 Rest of the World.

    United We Stand is published monthly during the football season. You can pay for a one year, ten issue, subscription online using PayPal. Go to your PayPal account, then 'send money' and put the amount and our email address 'uwsmag@yahoo.co.uk'. It's very simple.

    The cost is £24.50 for UK, £29 for the Republic of Ireland and Europe, £33 for the Rest of the World. We will post the mags to address that comes with your Paypal order unless you state otherwise.

    You can also pay for a subscription by sending a cheque/postal order made payable to 'UWS' to UWS, PO Box 45, Manchester. M41 9GQ. Please state which issue you would like your subscription to commence with.
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    Post by king_diamond Sat 23 May 2009, 4:18 am

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    Post by king_diamond Sat 23 May 2009, 4:18 am

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    Post by king_diamond Sat 23 May 2009, 4:19 am

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    Post by king_diamond Sat 23 May 2009, 4:19 am

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    Post by king_diamond Sat 23 May 2009, 4:19 am

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    Post by king_diamond Wed 27 May 2009, 11:49 pm

    ROME, Italy (CNN) -- Manchester United and Barcelona are making their final preparations for Wednesday's Champions League final in Rome in which the English and Spanish clubs will go head to head for the biggest prize in European club football.


    United and Barcelona fans, dressed as centurions, pose together outside Rome's Colosseum.
    more photos »

    Wednesday's final at the 67,000-capacity Stadio Olimpico, which kicks off at 8.45 p.m. local time (1445 ET), is the most eagerly awaited match of the season, bringing together two of the continent's best supported and most successful teams -- both with reputations for attacking football.

    The match also features a superstar cast that includes the two players currently considered to be the world's best; United's Portuguese world footballer of the year, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Barcelona's mesmerizing Argentine forward, Lionel Messi. Who's best? Ronaldo or Messi?

    Defending champions United are seeking to win the European Cup for the fourth time overall and for the second consecutive season after holding their nerve a year ago to beat English rivals Chelsea on penalties in Moscow.

    Barcelona, who last lifted the European Cup in 2006, are going for their third title. Both clubs have already won their domestic leagues while Barca also lifted the Spanish Cup. See photos of past United-Barca encounters »

    The Catalans beat Chelsea, Bayern Munich and Lyon in the knockout stages to reach the final while United overcame Arsenal, Porto and Inter Milan.

    Don't Miss
    Platini: Don't come to Rome without a ticket
    Royalty to attend Champions League final
    Vote: Who's best: Ronaldo or Messi?
    Euro final: The clash of the cash
    Thousands of fans have flocked to Rome with at least 20,000 United supporters estimated to be in the city, arriving on 44 flights from Manchester alone, according to UEFA's Web site. Barcelona fans filled 75 planes, UEFA said.

    UEFA President Michel Platini urged supporters without match tickets to stay away from the city amid concerns over security after a British man was stabbed in the early hours Wednesday.

    "The Rome police will have an important role to play but there will also be Spanish and English police amongst the fans, ensuring that every security aspect is taken care of," Platini told CNN. Watch Platini on security challenge »

    "Problems have arisen in the past when supporters arrive without tickets and I always tell fans to please not travel if they haven't got a ticket for the match. When ticket-less fans converge in a city, problems occur."

    United manager Alex Ferguson, who has been in charge since 1986, says his players are motivated by the chance to make history by becoming the first club to win back-to-back titles since the Champions League was established in its current format in the 1990s.

    "It's never been done and we're good at doing things for the first time and it's another opportunity for us to achieve that," the veteran Scot told reporters. Watch Ferguson and Guardiola discuss the match »

    By contrast, Barcelona manager Josep Guardiola is coming to the end of his first season in charge of the club for whom he starred as a player during the 1990s, helping them lift the European Cup in 1992.

    "I would never have imagined this at the start of the season. I wanted to do a good job but it's too much," Guardiola told reporters.

    "To win the league and cup in my first year and now to fight to be the best team in Europe is magnificent. We've had plenty of time to prepare for this game and we're in the right frame of mind. We are here to win."

    United's hopes have been boosted by club captain and key defender Rio Ferdinand's return to fitness. Ferdinand's partnership with Serbian defender Nemanja Vidic could be crucial to stopping a Barcelona forward line expected to include Samuel Eto'o and Thierry Henry as well as Messi.


    But Ferguson is without Scottish midfielder Darren Fletcher who is suspended after his sending off in the semifinal second leg at Arsenal.

    Barcelona are missing defenders Daniel Alves and Eric Abidal due to suspension, while French forward Henry, key midfielder Andres Iniesta and Mexican defender Rafael Marquez have been fitness doubts in the build-up to the final.
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    Post by king_diamond Wed 27 May 2009, 11:50 pm

    Tune in to the Champions League final today between Manchester United and Barcelona in Rome to settle the debate over the best soccer club in Europe.
    Even if it's 0-0 at the end of overtime and winds up being decided by penalty kicks, it will still be more entertaining than any football, baseball, basketball or hockey game played in North America the rest of the year.
    One reason is because of what you won't see: a rainout, TV time-outs, constant huddles, endless free throws, throws to hold the runner close, in-game interviews, instant replay reviews and a half-dozen hyperventilating assistants on the sidelines screaming into headsets like they're calling in air cover.
    What you will see: Two 45-minute halves offering the closest thing to nonstop action in any sport. The two best teams in the world, fronted by the two best players and supporting casts packed with international all-stars, all of them the size of the guys on your office softball team.
    There's nothing in the other major pro sports quite like it. There are no leagues in other countries to rival the NFL, MLB, NBA and NHL, because only a handful of other countries even bother to compete at those games and there's only so much talent to go around.
    Soccer is the opposite.
    There are enough players around the globe to stock a half-dozen topflight leagues in Europe alone — each with its own version of the Yankees, plus secondary dynasties like the Red Sox, Cardinals and Dodgers always in the mix. The top few teams from each of those leagues play a knockout tournament until only two remain, in this case English Premier League champion United and Spain's La Liga champion Barcelona, two of the most glamorous and tradition-rich clubs in the game.
    They are led by stars Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, respectively, each a contender for player of the year and the kind of Kobe vs. LeBron matchup the NBA has been crossing its fingers and toes for nearly eight months to get.
    There's a handful of story lines just as compelling, beginning with United's 67-year-old manager, Alex Ferguson, chasing one more crowning achievement in his 35th season, with former Barcelona great and current rookie coach Pep Guardiola standing in his way.
    Better still, the excitement rippling through the crowd during Europe's version of the Super Bowl should translate much better to the small screen than the American one. The seats will be filled with fans of the clubs, not their corporate sponsors, and no team in any game played on these shores comes close to the rabid followers even the bottom-dwelling clubs over there collect.
    This Champions League final should also have a unique appeal over here, if only because both Ferguson and Guardiola hate the low-scoring, defensive approach favored by much of the rest of the world almost as much as Americans do.
    "Two massive clubs, with big histories, who play football the right way," is how United's Ryan Giggs put it, and he should know. Giggs signed with Manchester as a 14-year-old prodigy in 1987, made his way onto the first team four years later and has been with the club for every big match since.
    Guardiola said on the eve of the match that for the Spaniards to consider their victory worthwhile, it will have to be an artistic triumph, too.
    "I want the players to feel well, to feel beautiful, to feel like they are playing in front of the whole world, to be daring and to feel that they are here because they deserve it and to show how good we are," he said. "It's the best match to show it."
    Last season, an estimated 150 million people in 230 countries and territories tuned in to watch Manchester United defeat Premier League rival Chelsea. Whether the sport ever generates those kind of numbers in the United States remains to be seen.
    Already, more kids play soccer here than any other game besides basketball — more, in fact, than many of the world's traditional powers.
    Of course, as a very savvy marketer once explained, if participation numbers translated into audience ratings, everybody in America would be playing touch football and watching bike racing on TV.
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    Post by king_diamond Wed 27 May 2009, 11:52 pm

    ROME (AP) -- Already with the domestic league and cup titles to show for his first season as a coach, Barcelona's Pep Guardiola chases the ultimate prize in European club football on Wednesday when he bids to topple Manchester United and Alex Ferguson in a Champions League final fans all over the world have been waiting for.
    From Cristiano Ronaldo vs. Lionel Messi to Wayne Rooney vs. Thierry Henry, this final shapes up as a classic matchup in a showpiece showdown. Guardiola pits his skills against a 67-year-old master manager who has 25 titles in 23 seasons, and the 38-year-old rising star is confident his outstanding Barca team won't let him down.
    "I think we have been able to show maturity for quite a few months, but tomorrow's game is the most important," Guardiola told reporters at the Stadio Olimpico on Tuesday. "I want the players to feel well, to feel beautiful, to feel like they are playing in front of the whole world, to be daring and to feel that they are here because they deserve it and to show how good we are. It's the best match to show it."
    After scoring 151 league and cup goals this season, Barcelona has the ability to take the title from defending champion United, which also captured the Premier League title for the third season in a row and 11th time in 17 years.
    While Barcelona is chasing its third trophy of the season, United is after a fourth. Ferguson's team has also captured the FIFA Club World Cup and domestic League Cup.
    United will make more history on Wednesday if South Korean star Park Ji-sung becomes the first Asian player to play in a Champions League final, after being surprisingly left out of the squad that beat Chelsea in a penalty shootout following a 1-1 draw in Moscow.
    "I think there was a terrible disappointment last season when we didn't include him in the squad," Ferguson said Tuesday. "I can assure you he will be involved in the squad tomorrow and, if he plays or comes on, he has an impact that other players like Messi and Ronaldo don't have.
    "He's a different type of player. He has fantastic understanding of space and movement which is completely different from Messi and Cristiano. (They) work to have the ball all the time and make things happen, whereas Ji-sung doesn't need the ball."
    United defender Rio Ferdinand says he will play after shaking off a calf muscle injury and Guardiola said he was confident striker Thierry Henry and attacking midfielder Andres Iniesta would also be fit, setting up the final even neutral fans have been waiting for.
    In Messi, Samuel Eto'o and Henry Barcelona has a strikeforce to match or even outplay United's front men. Ferguson is unlikely to field Ronaldo, Rooney, Dimitar Berbatov and Carlos Tevez all at the same time, and there is speculation that two of them will be on the bench when the game kicks off.
    Likewise, Ferguson is unlikely to field both of his 30-something midfielders Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs at the same time against the top quality duo of Xavi Hernandez and Andres Iniesta.
    But Ferguson should have the edge when it comes to defense.
    With Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic in central defense, that lineup at the back can show why the team went a British record 1,311 minutes without conceding a goal in the league during midseason.
    Barcelona, by contrast, is counting the cost of having Brazilian right back Daniel Alves and French leftback Eric Abidal missing through suspension and Mexican centerback Rafael Marquez out through injury.
    Wednesday's game could be Tevez' last in a United shirt. The Argentina forward has said he expects to leave because United won't pay $37.5 million to turn his two-year loan deal into a full term contract.
    The only thing missing from this final are any Italians.
    Although the showpiece game is being played in Italy's capital, Serie A has missed out again in a competition it used to dominate when AC Milan and Juventus were at their best.
    Now Italy's top teams can only watch, although there are security fears that local fans may try to ambush the spectacle by targeting the visiting 50,000 spectators from England and Spain, who have been advised to stay away from certain parts of the city on match day.
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    Post by king_diamond Wed 27 May 2009, 11:53 pm

    Sir Alex: This is our time

    There are moments Sir Alex Ferguson rues in past European expeditions; missed opportunities that fuel his burning desire to maintain a relentless pursuit to put United where he says the club belongs: among the continent’s elite.

    Reigning European champions, the Reds are the dominant force despite Barcelona's protestations, but Sir Alex wants more trophies to prove it. He joked in Rome that his team-talk will come to him during a restless night's sleep. You can bet it’ll be a spine-tingler.

    Just as equalling Liverpool's 18 league titles was never even considered ‘job done’, neither would becoming the first team to retain the Champions League. Sir Alex has bigger plans, but winning on Wednesday would be a good start, or rather a continuation.

    “There’s an opportunity for us to put ourselves alongside Europe’s great teams. This is a squad with a great future, a young team withh experience to do well in the next few years. On Wednesday we can endorse that.

    “To be considered a great team, you have to win the European Cup again. But there have been unlucky teams down the years. You have to win this cup, it's a prerequisite. Teams like ourselves and Barcelona have to win this trophy to be considered in that regard. But not everyone can win it.

    “Nobody has retained the trophy,” he adds. “But we're good at firsts. We have a opportunity to repeat that. It’s interesting – unusual – that nobody has retained the trophy since the Champions League started. It was done regularly in the sixties and seventies. There were cycles of great teams, like Ajax, Bayern Munich and Real Madrid. We have an opportunity to change that; I hope we take it.”
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    Post by king_diamond Wed 27 May 2009, 11:54 pm

    Not just the Ronny-Messi show

    Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi are the two names on everyone’s lips here in Rome, but Sir Alex says there are other players who can shape the Champions League final tonight at Stadio Olimpico.

    “All my players have to play well,” said Sir Alex. “From our perspective there is always an opportunity to score. We always carry a goal-threat right throughout the team. Hopefully that continues.

    “Another important factor is concentration and, I have to say, a bit of luck. Not all teams get it, but in certain moments of a game you need it. That can decide or turn the game, and hopefully we get it.”

    United have carried out in-depth analysis of Barcelona’s matches and their main strengths, and of course Messi comes up as a main topic. “Like every game, you analyse your opponent’s strengths. Yes, Messi is a fantastic footballer. We played against him twice last season and we know exactly how powerful a player he can be.”

    Sir Alex adds that there are moments when he attacks your defence “and you think, ‘Oh no, not again.’ We hope we can cope with that, and I think we have the players to do that. It won’t be easy and you have to respect great players. We will definitely respect him.”

    In Ronaldo, United have a player who can do exactly the same to Barcelona. “They’re are two fantastic footballers,” adds the boss. “They both have the ability and courage to attack defenders all the time.

    "No matter how many fouls they get against them, they get up and want the ball. That’s the kind of courage you want to see. They both have it. Both have different types of qualities; they are physically different types of players.”
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    Post by king_diamond Wed 27 May 2009, 11:54 pm

    But it’s not just the Ronaldo and Messi show; Sir Alex believes he has plenty of key players who can influence the match, even, as in Ji-sung Park’s case, if he doesn’t have the ball at his feet.

    “It was a terrible disappointment for Ji-sung when we didn’t include him in the squad last season in Moscow,” adds the United manager.

    “I am sure he will be involved in the squad tonight. And if he plays or comes on, he can make an impact that players like Messi and Ronaldo cannot, because he is a different type of player.

    “He has a fantastic understanding of space and movement, which is completely different from Cristiano and Messi in the respect that they want the ball all the time to try and create something, whereas Ji-sung doesn’t need the ball to have an influence.”
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    Post by king_diamond Wed 27 May 2009, 11:54 pm

    The notion goes that whomever comes out on top - Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi - then the World's best player tag is automatically theirs.

    Cristiano is on the throne currently, but he says retaining his crown will not be his motivation in front of a packed Stadio Olimpico crowd on Wednesday. Believe it or not, his aim is shared glory.

    “Whoever wins the final will have a better chance [of winning the award]," Ronny said. "But I don’t care about that, what I want is to win the Champions League – that’s it. Some players in my team have played fantastic football this season - they deserve it.”

    Ronaldo is aware that the TV cameras and photographers' lenses will focus on him all night, but it's a pressure he's learned to live with. “It’s normal for people to talk about me," he says. "I’m 100 per cent focused on the game. I try to help my team, I will try to score and win the game.

    "It's a great stadium. I feel very good to play here. I’ve played here a few times and, in my opinion, I played well. I have to play well now. The pitch, the stadium, the fans… they’re amazing; I look forward to playing here and winning. It’s going to be special.”
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    Post by king_diamond Wed 27 May 2009, 11:55 pm

    Rio won't jeopardise Reds

    Rio Ferdinand says he is fit and ready to face Barcelona having fully recovered from a calf injury.

    The defender has not played since the Reds' Champions League semi-final second leg at Arsenal but at United's pre-match press conference in Rome, Ferdinand confirmed his availablity for Wednesday.

    "I’ve been training for three or four days without a problem so I’m fine," said Rio at Stadio Olimpico. "I’ve been working hard with the physios at the club, training hard and working on the injury.

    “I spoke to the manager. He knows I wouldn’t put myself in a position to play in the game if I wasn’t 100 per cent fit because we’ve got a talented squad.

    "If my fitness was ever going to be detrimental to the team and the result, then I wouldn’t play. I wouldn’t do that to the team. The team winning is more important than an individual playing in a cup final."

    However, the thought of potentially helping United to a second UEFA Champions League and Barclays Premier League double has clearly focused Ferdinand's mind on his recovery.

    "That’s why we’re here, that’s what we want to do," said Rio.

    "Until you do that, you don’t really know where it puts you in the list of great teams. We just want to win it. It’s up to you guys (the media) to determine where you place us in football history. It’s not for us to say we’re this or we’re that, we’re not here to do that. We just to win whatever competition we’re in, and we’re in a big one tomorrow."
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    Post by king_diamond Wed 27 May 2009, 11:57 pm

    Eto'o eyes history


    United may be trying to re-write the history books with victory in Rome on Wednesday, but Samuel Eto’o admits Barcelona are also eyeing a place in folklore.

    Victory for the Reds would not only make Sir Alex Ferguson's side the first club to defend the Champions League trophy, it would also seal a second-ever Quadruple. Meanwhile the Catalan giants, already winners of La Liga and the Copa del Ray, can become only the fifth European Treble winners.

    "We have the opportunity to rewrite the Spanish Football history books and that’s what is important," Eto'o told Barca TV.

    "That should be our motivation. To win it not just for our fans but for the fans of Spanish football. With that to drive us forward, we shouldn’t lose."

    Neutrals are eagerly anticipating a feast of attacking football in the Stadio Olimpico but Eto'o echoes United's Nemanja Vidic, insisting that victory is far more important than entertainment.

    "We have to make sure it is a perfect final, especially for us," he said. "And it’s only a perfect final if you win it! We know it’s going to be tough but we’ll give it everything."
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    Post by king_diamond Wed 27 May 2009, 11:58 pm

    Match Pack: Barcelona

    United bid to retain the Champions League, with Barcelona awaiting in Rome...

    Form Guide: In 14 games since March's back-to-back Premier League defeats, United have won 11 and drawn three games, ensuring an 18th league title and a berth in Rome. The final victory of that run came at Hull on Sunday, where Sir Alex Ferguson had the luxury of resting a hatful of players who are likely to start on Wednesday. Barcelona have also been resting players ever since they clinched their own domestic crown, meaning little can be read into successive La Liga defeats against Mallorca and Osasuna.

    Ins and Outs: Suspension rules out Darren Fletcher for United, while Barca are hampered by the absence of banned defenders Eric Abidal and Daniel Alves. The Catalans are still closely monitoring the fitness of key duo Andrés Iniesta (thigh) and Thierry Henry (knee), with both players confident of featuring. Similarly hopeful of lining up at the Stadio Olimpico is United's Rio Ferdinand, who is on course to return from a calf injury

    Star Man: Take your pick. The tie is inevitably being billed as a battle between Ballon D'Or holder Cristiano Ronaldo and pocket genius Lionel Messi, but rarely can a supporting cast have been so star-studded. Two teams packed full of potential match-winners.

    Referee: Massimo Busacca will be the man in the middle. This will be the 44-year-old Swiss official's 33rd Champions League tie, with his last outing coming as United overcame Porto in Portugal.
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    Post by king_diamond Thu 28 May 2009, 12:06 am

    Ando expects 'special' match

    Anderson believes the experience of having ruled Europe last season will aid the Reds' bid to do so again in Rome...

    What kind of final can we expect on Wednesday?
    Everybody knows that United and Barcelona are two great sides and it has all the makings of being a great final and one that will be talked about for many years to come. Getting to play in games like this with the chance to win trophies is the reason why we work so hard every day. I hope to be involved, but just being part of a team that is playing in a final is fantastic and I think it will be a very special occasion for every one of us.

    Will you draw on the experience of last season’s showpiece?
    Yes, of course. It’s always a great experience to play in a final and you learn many things. You understand how to better deal with certain situations and focus on the little things that you might have missed the last time round.

    Will United take confidence from the fact Barcelona have not always done so well against English sides in the last few years?
    Not really because every game is different. I’m sure Barcelona will be fully focused on doing well, just like we will be and it should be a great game.

    How pleased have you been with your form of late?
    I was injured for part of the season and coming back from that was a slow process because I had to get myself right physically and mentally. I’m enjoying my football at the moment and I hope I can keep helping the team to win trophies.

    Is the chance to make history by defending the trophy something the players are thinking about?
    Of course. We have every intention of winning the trophy, but we would want that anyway no matter whether we were going for back-to-back wins. We always want to win every competition we play in and it’s our aim to do that on Wednesday.
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    Post by king_diamond Thu 28 May 2009, 12:08 am

    Fans plan Busby tribute

    As United and Barcelona take to the field on Wednesday evening, the Stadio Olimpico's Curva Nord will transform into a tribute to Sir Matt Busby.

    United supporters at the game will be salute one of football's greatest manager, the day after the 100th anniversary of his birth, with a special mosaic ahead of kick-off.

    The giant display, organised by the club in association with the Stretford End Flags supporters' group, will spell out 'For Sir Matt' next to a giant image of the legendary Scot.

    The mosaic follows previous projects between United and SEF, including the mosaics which preceded last year's semi-final win over Barcelona, the final in Moscow, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's testimonial and this season's home victory over Arsenal.

    Stretford End Flags is a donation-powered organisation devoted to the colourful and buoyant support of United, at home and abroad. For more details, visit www.stretfordendflags.com.

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