Mention the Stadium of Light in Lisbon to Manchester United and it is sure to bring back some terrible memories from the Champions League last December. That was the venue where the 1999 champions crashed out of the competition on one of their darkest nights in their time at the top table in Europe.
United can put that right in Lisbon tomorrow night but their form in the Premiership has become a major worry after that draw at Reading on the weekend. United started the campaign well by winning their first four matches but the wheels have come off in the last week with the home defeat against Arsenal and that 1-1 draw last Saturday.
The form of Wayne Rooney is a massive concern for the manager and Tuesday night would be the perfect place to find his feet again. Manchester United need Rooney at full tilt and motivation should not be a problem for the England striker on the ground where he broke his metatarsal during the Euro 2004 quarter-final against Portugal.
Benfica are not a great team, even though they did knock Liverpool out of the competition last season. Ronald Koeman is gone as manager but they will enjoy incredible support tomorrow night and they are sure to make it very difficult for Manchester United.
Cristiano Ronaldo has been getting terrible stick at the away games in the Premiership and he will get more from the Benfica fans tomorrow night. Ronaldo was banned for one match by UEFA for his gesture to home fans in Lisbon last December and he will be booed every time he even looks like getting the ball. Ronaldo has shown great maturity this season in the face of serious abuse from supporters. He was the best player for Manchester United at Reading last weekend and that really is the only way to respond to the ‘boo boys’. That maturity will be tested to the limit again in Lisbon.
The performances of Ronaldo and Rooney are crucial to their chances against Benfica. Ferguson played a five-man midfield against Reading and left Saha on the bench and it did not yield a win. That may change tomorrow night but United do need a win to restore the confidence that has been battered over the last eight days. A target of 10 points is the norm for progression from the first group stage and a win would put them on their way to that target but an away point is very attainable for the visiting team.
Celtic need full points from their home match in the same group against FC Copenhagen at Celtic Park and I think they have enough class to win. Their supporters took great heart from their performance at Old Trafford two weeks ago and are in flying form after their big victory over Rangers last weekend. Copenhagen work very hard and will make it difficult for Celtic but they should win.
Arsenal were excellent in their away win over Hamburg on Matchday 1 and on Tuesday they play their first European tie at their new ground against CSKA Moscow. They were helped by the sending-off of the Hamburg ‘keeper two weeks ago but they still won away and are on their way in the group. It did take them a little while to finally win in the Premiership at the Emirates Stadium and they will be hoping it does not take them so long to do the same in the Champions League. The victory over Manchester United was huge for Arsenal and they should get three more points against CSKA on Tuesday night.
Two more English teams are in action on Wednesday night. In Group A, Chelsea are away to Levski Sofia. The English champions began their campaign with a good victory over Werder Bremen and should add three more points to their tally at Stamford Bridge tomorrow evening.
And finally, Liverpool were ok and nothing more in their first match in Eindhoven and will need to improve against Turkish side Galatasaray as they come to Anfield on Wednesday. The feeling is that they will improve and with Dirk Kuyt proving a massive success since his move from Holland they should have far too much for Galatasaray. With all the new players at the club, it was always going to take a little while for Benitez to find the right blend. However, their win over Tottenham last weekend showed that the Spanish manager is moving in the right direction and they should finish the second round of matches with four points from two matches played.
