FCBARCELONA.CAT

22.04.2008 17:27

Ferguson: “We are stronger than last time”

Berta Brau

Sir Alex Ferguson has announced that Manchester United are going to Camp Nou to win, but does not believe that his side should be considered to be the favourites to go through.

The Scottish coach believes that both games will be evenly balanced with the victory having a real chance to go on and win he trophy.

After landing in the Ciutat Contal, the Red Devils' squad went directly to the Hesperia Tower where they will be staying and Ferguson and defender Nemanja Vidic appeared for the pre-match press conference. The incredible amount of people from the media that were present heard the manager state that in comparison to the last time his side were in the semi finals the current crop "is stronger and the squad is better" and assured that they are capable of anything.

Not the favourites

Ferguson then explained that although United are not feeling any pressure, he does not see Barça as underdogs. "I do not view us as favourite," he explained. "I think that both teams are strong and it will be a very even tie." In that sense, the United boss went on to state that is the reason that he believes that "the team that goes through will have a real chance of winning the Champions League".

Motivation and confidence

Vidic then talked about the high level of motivation that playing in Camp Nou brings out and said that he felt that United "are capable of winning". He continued: "Last year we had some bad luck against Milan, but this season we are stronger and we have a better squad so I believe that we are go enough to go through here."

A great team

The central defender could not hide his admiration for Lionel Messi as he described him as "one of the best players in the world" with his speed "and close control in one-on-one situations". Vidic added that Barça "have a great team and count on players of great quality." He did not want to predict an outcome but was thinks that Barça will certainly "be going out to win".

"We cannot worry about the past"

When asked about the previous meetings between FC Barcelona and Manchester United, Ferguson said that his side would take any notice of what has happened before. "It has been a long time since the last game and the current team is completely different to back then," he said. "I do not think we should worry about the past." Despite that, he did add that the games from 1994 and 1999 were good lessons to be learnt from.