Man Utd v AC Milan Champions League Rooney a doubt for Beckham return

Wednesday night promises to be the big David Beckham and Wayne Rooney show in the Champions League clash between Man Utd v AC Milan. The first leg in Milan, ended in a pulsating 3-2 victory for Alex Ferguson’s men, but they will need to rediscover some of that home invulnerability if they are to make light work of the second leg at Old Trafford. After nearly seven years away from Old Trafford, David Beckham makes his return, courtesy of his loan spell with the Italian giants. On his last Champions League game at Old Trafford before heading to Real Madrid, Beckham scored himself a brace of goals. The majority of the Manchester crowd will not want to see history repeating itself like that on Wednesday night.

Things could have been a lot more comfortable for Manchester united, had a lapse in concentration not allowed Clarence Seedorf to grab a crucial second goal for AC Milan. They have a big job in overturning Man United at Old Trafford, if they want to keep their strong record against United going. Every encounter over two legs between the two sides in the Champions league, the Italians have come out on top, largely thanks to their performances at home. The home leg in this season’s competition however, let them down badly, despite getting off to a promising start. Milan overran United in the early part of the game, and should have put the fixture out of sight there and then. United looked at their disjointed worst, unable to keep a hold of any possession. That was until Wayne Rooney stole the show in the second half.

The England striker scored twice with head (that makes 9 headed goals for him in the Champions League). United only managed to pick up four points out of the possible nine available in the home fixtures of the group stages, and that was some surprise as they were in an easy group. They even squandered their excellent home record in the Champions League, when they lost to Besiktas, ending a 23 run of games without defeat at Old Trafford. The previous defeat that United had suffered at home in the Champions league, was of course, to Wednesday night’s opponents, AC Milan. United have had to come from behind twice this season at home in the Champions league, but now the stakes are different because there are away goals to worry about. Milan need a clear two goal advantage on the night.

The first leg result bore a spooky similarity to the 2006/07 meeting between the two sides in the semi final of the competition, when United won 3-2 in the first leg, but then lost badly in the second leg, 3-0, with Kaka on target that night. United laboured to 1-0 win over Wolves in the Premier League on the weekend, but they should not need any motivating ahead of Wednesday. Fans will be packed in to see David Beckham mark this historic return. United simply need to do what they do best, and that is up the tempo to attack at speed. Beckham was employed in the middle of the park in the first leg, and was not effective there at all, and as a whole, the Milan side don’t look particularly fast. Their control on the ball and passing is what they rely on, and if United can disrupt that, they should be in for a good night. It is unlikely that Milan would be able to match United in full flow at Old Trafford.

But is there a sting in this tale from former servant of Alex Ferguson, David Beckham? Will his return fade into anonymity, or will he produce one of his big match moments that could crush the Champions League dreams of United for 2010? Beckham scored 86 goals in 394 appearances for Manchester United, and won the Premier League six times. United will be waiting on news about Wayne Rooney, who missed the weekend game at Molineux because of an aggravated knee problem. Quite how United will manage without him, as he is their one man strike force, could be a key factor on the biggest night of their season so far.

Milan still have Serie A dreams for this season, as well as success in the Champions League. Boss Leonardo has included striker Pato, who is the key component up front for them, in the squad, after missing their weekend match with a hamstring problem. The likelihood of Wayne Rooney appearing on Wednesday night, is not so promising, as he has been described as very doubtful for the match by Alex Ferguson. There were reports that Rooney was not going to be fit for England’s midweek friendly against Egypt, but he appeared. However, his knee was not in good shape afterwards, appearing to have aggravated any problem that may have been there, during England’s 3-1 win. Ferguson has already lost Michael Owe for the season, so that just leaves Berbatov up front. Subsequent reports hint that the problem with Rooney’s knee is serious enough to keep him out of action, so he may appear off the bench if his club needs him on the night. Not so for defender Wes Brown, who may be out for the rest of the season with a broken foot.

BETTING STATS

Head to Head
AC Milan 2, Man Utd 3
AC Milan 3, Man Utd 0
Man Utd 3, AC Milan 2
AC Milan 1, Man Utd 0
Man Utd 0, AC Milan 1

Last 5 Match Goals
Man Utd: 10 For, 6 Against
AC Milan: 9 For, 5 Against

Current Form:
Man Utd: W8, D1, L1
AC Milan: W4, D3, L3

Champions League Form:
Man Utd: WWWDLWW
AC Milan: WLWDDDL

Win Percentage:
Man Utd have a 73.9 win percentage at home
AC Milan have a 52.9 win percentage away from home

MATCH PRICES
Man Utd to win: 8/11 at Victor Chandler
Draw: 11/4 at SkyBet
AC Milan: 9/2 at Ladbrokes

Asian Handicap Betting Advice: AC Milan have problems with pace and speed, while United don’t quite have the ball skills in the middle of the park. This is why they are fairly evenly matched, but for some reason, United have struggled at home this season in the Champions League. Milan should be good enough for a draw on the night, it won’t get them through, but they are of equal quality with United as long as they don’t have a super collapse. If Rooney is missing and Ronaldinho is at his devastating bet, and with Milan having nothing to lose, away from home and already behind, they could pose a threat.
AC Milan +0.50 Asian Handicap: 11/10 at Paddy Power

David Beckham Anytime Scorer: 13/2 at Paddy Power