Ferguson relying on greater tactical awareness

IF MANCHESTER UNITED are to take honours, as well as profits, from an international cash register known as the Champions League, Alex Ferguson's team will need to acquire a better grasp of the body language of European football than it has done up to now.

For United, winning the Cup Winners' Cup in 1991 proved a false dawn. Compared to what the European Cup has become this was a selling plater. To win the Champions Cup now, United will have to revise past lessons, and learn new ones.

First comes the small matter of reaching the knock out quarter final stage by finishing in one of the top two places in the qualifying group. Two seasons ago, United found this beyond them as they were humiliated in Barcelona and Gothenburg.

Tonight, with UEFA's restrictions on non English players swept away post Bosman and his squad considerably strengthened by the addition of, among others, Cruyff, Poborsky and Johnsen. Ferguson will begin, to discover just how realistic his chances of fulfilling a long standing ambition to win the European Cup have become.

While there is never a good time to face Italian holders of the world's most prestigious club trophy, meeting Juventus in the Stadio Delle Alpi just now seems as good a time as any. Juventus are running in a new team and as Sunday's indifferent 1-1 draw with the newly promoted Reggiana demonstrated, some of the working parts are a little stiff.

Boksic and Vieri have replaced Ravanelli and Vialli, Vierchowod and Paulo Sousa are no longer there, and tonight Torricelli and Jugovic are suspended. Zidane has joined Deschamps, his French compatriot, in midfield, and the defence has acquired a Uruguayan, Montero, who like like Vieri, was signed from Atalanta.

Ferguson thinks the opposition will try to deny United space and break up their passing movements before catching them on the break. He is fully aware of the dangers inherent in giving the ball away at this level and expects his players to concentrate even harder than usual on keeping possession.

Ferguson's options are rather greater than they were two seasons ago, when he felt forced "by some stupid bloody rule I couldn't do anything about" to leave out Schmeichel in Barcelona and then had to suffer the sight of Romario and Stoichkov dicing his square defence into bite sized lumps.

Memories of that evening, and the moribund night in Gothenburg that followed, cannot be totally ignored now. United's successive European failures after winning the championship in 1993 and 1994 were as much the result of the players' naivety as restrictions on foreigners.

Ferguson practically acknowledged this yesterday. "Ability wise and temperament wise I think we're good enough," he said. "But if there is a question mark it's on the tactical side and the ability to understand opponents."

Cantona's presence UEFA having waived a one match ban should be a bonus but the Frenchman's record in this competition, both for Leeds and United, is so far unimpressive. The better Continental players are able to get tight on him and exploit his lack of explosive pace.

Ferguson will surely want to keep tonight's match as tight as the FA Cup final, when his team set out to stifle Liverpool's free flowing game. But Roy Keane, so crucial to that exercise, is missing. Furthermore, Pallister is doubtful with an knee injury.

A win for United, given their speed on the break, their extra attacking options, the way Cruyff and Giggs are instinctively switching positions and the bounding confidence of Beckham, is not out of the question, but a draw would be a highly satisfactory start.