By Myles Palmer
Man United will win 2-0 or 2-1 tonight.
Gooners should hope that United qualify for the semi.
Because two hard games against Juventus will disrupt their Premiership form.
Basically, I’m expecting to see the Giggs and Figo show.
For United, it’s press or die.
If they sit back in awe again, they have no chance.
If Butt, Giggs and Van Nistelrooy chase and pester Makelele,Helguera and Hierro, Man United can win this game.
Last night’s matches showed that you need big players to produce big performances.
Buffon and Thuram and Nedved stood tall when it mattered most.
So Juventus beat Barcelona 2-1 in extra time – after Graham Poll had sent off Edgar Davids.
It was a slog.
But that’s what Juve are good at.Their work ethic is incredible.
They tackle and block and clear balls and back each other up and graft with huge determination.
Di Vaio and Del Piero were rubbish.
But the team was so compact, so rugged. so brave, so consistent,so knowledgeable, that they won anyway.
Inter’s Toldo was magnificent against Valencia, who were unlucky to go out on away goals after winning 2-1.
Ayala made a stupendous blunder to allow Vieri to score after 5.
But Aimar made it 1-1 a minute later.
Mobile, nimble, sharp, wonderfully acccurate, Aimar has become one of Europe’s most productive attacking players.
While Aimar fizzes like champagne, Baraja bashes like a bulldozer, a Spanish Bryan Robson.
Baraja scored the winner with a diving header that bounced and beat even Toldo.
Luckless Valencia should have had a penalty when Sanchez was clattered just inside the box by Materazzi.
Still a very good side. Unlucky on the night.Toldo was the difference.
Without Raul, Guti may start because his style suits Ronaldo more than that of Morientes.Or so they say.
Guti is left-footed and a half-striker.
A much more interesting option is Solari, a very exciting dribbler.
If Solari plays, United could be in big trouble.An Argentinian, aphenomenal talent.
I’ve got a funny feeling that Zidane wants the Raul role.
Zidane wants to link with Ronaldo and have shots.He wants to play in the last third and score.
In a game like this, a 3-1 up situation like this, Zidane’s gifts might be wasted in midfield. That could also put United in big trouble.
Remember Juventus 2 United 3, the comeback game in 1999?
Roy Keane made his suspension tackle in Turin.
Chasing Zidane by the far touchline in centrefield, he launched into an adventurous tackle, missed the ball by two inches, kicked Zidane on the shin.Not a bad foul at all.
But the yellow card put him out of the final against Bayern.
Keane is much slower now.
Zidane was more muscular at Juve, due to gym work and creatine, no doubt.
Now he is slimmer, quicker, more artistic.
On what we have seen lately, Giggs and Figo could be the main men tonight.
FIGO is a mixture of ancient and modern.
He can be an old-fashioned wing wizard who can do stop-start dribbles and zig-zag past three defenders.
But Figo can play very effectively all over the field.
He’s more than a winger, more than a midfielder.
He’s a one-off, a wingfield maestro who can make the play and score as well, as we saw with his sublimely aimed chip in the first leg.
Figo is also a modern power player who took Roberto Carlos apart once when playing for Barca.
He dribbled towards Carlos, beat him on the inside, went into the box, and smashed a left-foot shot inside the far post.Never seen anybody else do that to Carlos.
After France 98 I wondered whether the future of football would be dominated by lightning winger-strikers who could roam and explode beyond defences and finish, like Claudio Lopez and Overmars.
But Lopez went to Lazio and played as a striker, not as a winger.
And Barca don’t use Overmars as Wenger used him.
Five years on, Ryan Giggs has reminded me of that theory.
I can remember seeing Giggs for the first time at Spurs and ringing my sports editor George Barton at The Scotsman.
“This kid is the best 17-year old footballer I’ve ever seen!”
“You really think he’s that good?” said George.
“He can finish, he could play as a striker.And he can tackle, he could even play in the Bryan Robson role in 10 years time.”
Later on, for too many years, Giggs was patchy and his final ball was awful.
When United lost to Barcelona I said he should be loaned to them on a sabbatical, so he could learn how to play by watching Stoichkov.
In 1995-96 I used to slag him off in my column in FourFourTwo.
BUT NOW GIGGS IS MATURE AND ON FIRE.
And Real Madrid are scared of him.
And Fergie is using him in a new role, as a free-roaming second striker who can win the ball and beat people and terrify any defence.
The Giggs of 2003 is fast and tough and very energetic.
And he is very experienced.
And he is enjoying playing for Wales at last.
So Ryan Giggs has become, finally, the footballer I thought he would be when I saw him at 17.
It’s taken a helluva long time. But he has arrived.
With Scholes suspended, Giggs must score tonight.And I think he will.
We shall soon see.
Last night the big players were Buffon, Toldo, Thuram,Nedved and Aimar.
Tonight the big players could be Butt,Giggs,Van Nistelrooy, Figo and Zidane.
Of the five, I have most faith in Giggs and Figo.
How much can Ronaldo do against fast young defenders?
I don’t know.
Will Beckham have a better game this time?.
Yes. He can’t be that bad twice.
But Becks was no worse in Madrid than Del Piero was last night in Barcelona..
A lot of hype about this game.
A mega build-up in all media.
ITV claimed 12 million viewers for the first leg.
This will be more.
23rd April 2003.
P.S.
Please remind me never to watch another game where Patrick Kluivert is playing.
The laziest centre forward I have ever seen.
A plonker who took no responsibility.
Invariably bottles it in big games.
Missed 5 chances in the semi in France 98 against Brazil.