“Manchester United are neither very good nor very bad,” was the brief, unsophisticated summation of Friday’s Champions League draw by Alfredo Relano, perhaps Spain’s pre-eminent football journalist.
Ouch.
Yet, he’s probably right. United were worse than the sum of their parts before Ole Gunnar Solskjaer took over in December and they’ve been better since, with those nine consecutive away wins. United are fifth favourites from eight teams left in Champions League and Barcelona are not unhappy with their quarter-final draw.
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Barca respect United greatly and know they’re the commercial trailblazers to look up to off the field. Barca expect to win and with Atletico and Real Madrid out of the competition, dominated by the latter in the last half-decade, the Catalans have their eyes on winning the treble topped by lifting the European Cup in Spain’s capital in June.
Alexis Sanchez has been one of many expensive mistakes in the transfer market for United. Photo: EPA
Absolutely nothing, bar beating Real Madrid in the capital, could be sweeter during these politically charged times of tension between Catalonia and the rest of Spain.
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Barca knocked Madrid out of the Copa del Rey and left them behind in the league, but what of the United team they’ll meet, first at Old Trafford before the return at Camp Nou?
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has been happy to give youth players a chance to shine since he came in as interim boss. Photo: AFP
