FCBARCELONA.CAT

19.05.2009 12:11

FCB-Manchester: some memorable European nights

Vanessa Forns / Berta Brau

FC Barcelona and Manchester United will face each other in Rome next Wednesday in what promises to be as exciting a game as any of their previous nine clashes in European football so far.

The Premier League Champions take on the La Liga winners in a game that would mark a historic triple for Barca should they win and an equally impressive second win on the run for the current reigning European Champions if Sir Alex Ferguson’s men come out on top. It’ll be the second final the two teams have met in and whoever wins, the record between the two will remain very close indeed.

Nine meetings

At the moment, Manchester just hold the upper hand with three wins out of the nine games between the two, against two for Barca with four games having ended in draws, a clear indication of the way the spoils have been split equally between these two great European Football Institutions over the last 25 years since their first meeting in the1984-85 season.

One year on

The last time the two teams met was in the semi-final stage last season. In the first leg at the Nou Camp, Manchester squeezed a goalless draw from Frank Rijkaard’s team and in the return leg at Old Trafford a spectacular Paul Scholes volley was enough to see Sir Alex’s team through to the Moscow Final against Chelsea.

Goals galore in Group games

In the 98-99 and 94.95 seasons, the two clubs were drawn in the same groups and both seasons saw spectacular goal filled games. In 94-95 a 2-2 draw at Old Trafford was followed by a 4-0 thrashing at the Nou Camp with Stoichkov bagging a brace and Rivaldo and Ferrer each scoring to give Cruyff’s team a famous victory. Four years later, United went on to win the title at the Nou Camp after two thrilling 3-3 draws in which Ryan Giggs, Scholes, Neville and Rivaldo all shone. All in all, twenty goals in four group games!
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Hughes hero and villain in Rotterdam

Mark Hughes was the villain for Barca in the UEFA Cup Final held in Rotterdam in 1991 and the hero for Manchester. The United striker, who’d left the Nou Camp after just one season four years before, got both goals for the Red Devils and despite a Koeman strike11 minutes from time that gave Barca a glimmer of hope, it was United who took the title.

1983-1984 United comeback at Old Trafford

The first meeting between the two teams was in the 83-84 Cup Winners Cup quarter finals. Cesar Luis Menotti’s team looked set to go through after a comfortable enough 2-0 win at the Nou Camp in the first leg, but United stunned Barca with a 3-0 win at Old Trafford that saw them through to the semi finals.