PA journalist Simon Peach: "United have to pay attention to Messi – if they do not, it could get ugly on Wednesday"

Two football giants clash on Wednesday night when Manchester United host Barcelona at Old Trafford for the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final. United needed to overturn a 2-0 home defeat in their round-of-16 tie against PSG and they did it by producing a memorable comeback, while Barcelona eased past Lyon. This will be the 12th meeting between two clubs, and Barcelona hold the head-to-head record with four wins, while United have only three. The last two clashes were on the biggest stage, with Barcelona beating United in the Champions League finals of both 2009 and 2011. Manchester United might win on Wednesday. That is the verdict of Press Association chief football writer, Manchester United reporter Simon Peach. “United might win the battle on Wednesday but you would have to think Barca will win the war,” Peach exclusively told Vbetnews.com. “Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has brought about a sea change at Old Trafford, but they have lost three of their last four matches and are facing a Barcelona side in exceptional form. I cannot help but feel the fact that Barca are at home for the second leg is crucial.” Ole Gunnar Soslkjaer was able to welcome Marcus Rashford and Alexis Sanchez to training on Tuesday. Nemanja Matic, Ander Herrera, Eric Baily and Antonio Valencia were all absent from the session. Injury-hit United’s Achilles heel will be midfield position: “Ernesto Valverde may not be one of the biggest names in the game but he is a fine coach – his CV only underlines that fact. If he can find a way to overwhelm United’s injury-hit midfield then his side have a great chance.” Red Devils lost their last match on Saturday to Wolves playing with 3-5-1-1 formation and Peach is not sure whether the Norwegian will use the same formation against Barcelona. “United played with a back three flanked by wing-backs against Wolves and that would make sense given the midfield absentees. Nemanja Matic is doubt and Ander Herrera is almost certainly out. The three-man defence did not work particularly well at Molineux – nor has it at all the season – but Solskjaer has had a week to work on it if he has chosen to go that way,” said Manchester United reporter. Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi is in sensational form. He has scored three goals and set up another four in his last 10 games. In his pre-match press-conference, Solskjaer stated, that they will control not only Messi but also Luis Suarez and Phillippe Coutinho. According to Peach, United will have to pay attention to the Argentine but not forget about others. “They will have to pay attention to Messi – if they do not, it could get ugly on Wednesday. I feel the point he was more trying to make was if they focus too much on him then the other attacking players have more than enough in their locker to hurt United,” Peach added. Paul Pogba missed the PSG comeback through suspension but he returns for this match. Solskjaer, United fans and journalists, they are all expecting Pogba to perform against La Liga giants. “This is Paul Pogba’s stage. His form has dropped off as talk about his future has grown. As Solskjaer has said, he has the ability to run this match and United need a big game from him,” concluded Press Association’s chief football writer. The game will kick-off on Wednesday, April 10; 8 pm CET. The return leg will be played on 16 April. The winner of the battle will meet Liverpool/Porto winner in Semifinals.

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