Roma and Man Utd ready to renew Champions League rivalry

Click to enlarge photo

LONDON (Reuters) - AS Roma and Manchester United renew their Champions League rivalry on Tuesday (1845 GMT) with the Italian side determined to erase the bitter memories of last season's quarter-final exit.

United lost the first leg 2-1 a year ago before hammering seven past the stunned Romans in the return match to go through 8-3 on aggregate in a tie marred by crowd trouble in both legs.

The home team are without experienced talisman Francesco Totti while United have a doubt over midfielder Michael Carrick.

"Roma are second (in Serie A) and have a fantastic chance of winning it. They're a better team (than last season), without question, as their league position shows," United manager Alex Ferguson told reporters.

United and Roma also clashed in this year's group stages but German survivors Schalke 04 and Barcelona will be meeting for the first time in Tuesday's other quarter-final.

Barca threw away a 2-0 lead to lose 3-2 to Real Betis at the weekend and Schalke will be relishing the chance to upset the Catalans, who are without Ronaldinho, Lionel Messi and Deco.

Email this article to your friend -