Gooneriffic Returns? Man Utd Preview.

Back again. Mostly because I can't stop thinking about the match tomorrow night, and I thought writing this might help me concentrate on revision for my finals (which start tomorrow).

Obviously, a good result in this first leg would be fantastic, it goes without saying really. There isn't too much speculation going about the team at the moment; we know who is and isn't going to be fit (Silvestre aside), and we know which players will probably make up the majority of the starting line-up. It seems veyr likely that Almunia, Sagna, Toure, Gibbs, Nasri, Song, Cesc, Walcott and Adebayor will make up 9 of the first 11. Either Silvestre or Diaby will play in central defence alongside Toure. If he is sufficiently fit after his lay-off, I would take Djourou every time. His pace gives him a definite edge over Silvestre, who has not covered himself in glory in recent games.

The final place, in my opinion should go to the much maligned Nicklas Bendtner. I doubt this will be a particularly popular opinion, but it could be a very effective move. Presuming we continue with the 4-2-3-1 formation we have used in recent weeks, positioning Bendtner on the left of the three players behind the striker would help us gain the initiative in this match. Man Utd are likely to be playing Rafael at right-back, and Bendtner's height and power would trouble the young Brazilian, who is certainly more assured going forward than defending. Utd are likely to target Kieron Gibbs at left back and with Rafael overlapping Ronaldo, it would be a huge challenge for the youngster. Playing Bendtner on the left would help keep Rafael pinned back, and thus ease the burden on Gibbs.

If I was the manager, the team would line up thus:

-------------------Almunia----------------
--------Sagna---Toure--Djourou---Gibbs-
-----------------Song----Cesc-------------
---------Walcott----Nasri----Bendtner----
------------------Adebayor----------------

However, I expect Nasri and Cesc's role to be reversed, and on the evidence of our last performance against Middlesborough, this would not necessarily be a bad thing.

We need to gain the momentum early on in this matchin order to prevent Utd taking advantage of our weakened defence. Walcott should be able to prevent Evra from getting forward too often, Adebayor has the capacity to keep Vidic and Ferdinand busy all night long, and the Song-Cesc axis is able to dominate Man Utd central midfielders. If Bendtner is able to restrict Rafael's role on the right, we can cut off the supply to Utd's fearsome forward line and give ourselves the advantage.