The Dark Horse Coming

The quest for the big ugly pot is in the focus again - and our beloved Reds seem to have a really good chance to pull off a convincing victory tonight with not exactly star-studded FC Copenhagen visiting Old Trafford.

After battles against Celtic and Benfica, the Reds face a side with a less illustrious history. FC Copenhagen was founded in 1992 with a merge of two clubs but they've enjoyed a lot of success since then, the most remarkable in this summer: they beat Ajax 2-0 at Amsterdam after a 2-1 home defeat and qualified for the group stages of the Champions League. They have some well-known players such as Jesper Gronkjaer, Marcus Allbäck and Tobias Linderoth who all played in the Premiership. Impressive trio for a relatively unknown side but only one of them, the former Villain Allbäck will grace Old Trafford with Gronkjaer injured and Linderoth's wife is to give birth to their child.

The United faithful are surely expecting a sound victory but they can be bloody hard to play against as they've already proved: they conceded only one goal in their first two games - a penalty beat the keeper against Celtic. So we need to be patient: I think it will be a very difficult game even if only until our first goal. Giggs' return may provide much-needed creativity and verve on the flanks which can be particularly important with Cristiano Ronaldo is battling to be fit for the game just as Gary Neville.

'Cristiano Ronaldo hopefully should be OK and Gary Neville is a possibility,' Sir Alex said at United's pre-match press conference. 'We're not 100 per cent certain Ronaldo will be fit for Tuesday, but he has improved from the weekend.

'He's put a lot of work into his rehabilitation. He spent five hours in the swimming pool working on the flexibility of his ankle, so he's making a big effort to be there.'

Fergie also confirmed that Heinze would not be able to play though there's some hope the Argentinian will be fit for Sunday's clash against Liverpool.

So what do you think? Reds cruise to victory, or grind out a result? Copenhagen to frustrate Rooney and co.? Unimaginable, isn't it?

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