Manchester United take on Valencia in Champions League
Sir Alex Ferguson and his Manchester United squad will look to reverse their misfortunes in the face of Spanish opposition and gain some ground against the Spanish league leaders as they travel to the
Estadi de Mestalla to take on Valencia in Champions League group C action on Wednesday.
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At the start of every season the expectations to win trophies are exceedingly high in Manchester but England's most high profile club already find themselves in tough this season looking up at the competition.
In the English Premier League it's Chelsea who have got off to a brilliant start and currently sit a full three points ahead in the table. Manchester United have also had to settle for draws against several mid-table sides such as Fulham, Everton, and Bolton
- all could prove to be crucial dropped points late on in the season. In the Champions League, United were frustrated on home soil by a tenacious Glasgow Rangers side and had to settle for a 0-0 draw.
Valencia are off to a dream start and still undefeated this season. They sit a point clear atop the Spanish league and had a huge 4-0 victory against Turkish side Bursaspor in the Champions League, a match
which was played in Turkey. With the exception of a draw against Atletico Madrid, Valencia have a perfect record. Manchester will certainly be their toughest challenge to date and a victory could peg Valencia as real contenders.
Players to watch
Manchester United have suffered with inconsistency early on this season and have shown real vulnerabilities on defense as they have also blown some late leads. Defender Nemanja Vidic will be counted on
to provide United with some stability at the back. As for getting goals, that hasn't really been a problem as they already have 16 in the Premiership this season.
In past seasons United have had to look no further than to the likes of Wayne Rooney, but the English striker has been out of form recently and has managed only a single goal. Bulgarian striker Dimitar
Berbatov, on the other hand, has been tops for United with six goals as he is tied with Chelsea's Florent Malouda atop the English league's scoring race.
Valencia continue to prove that life after David Villa can be pretty good as coach Manolo Preciado has put together a tightly knit squad that works hard for each other. Valencia have been benefiting from
strong performances in all areas, but strikers Mata and Aritz Aduriz Zubeldia will be the one challenged with providing the spark on offense.
What to expect
Valencia have been nothing short of impressive and if United's form against Spanish opposition is any guide the English side will have a huge task ahead of them to try and steal a victory. United have
won only once away to Spanish opposition and have failed to even score in their last three attempts. Valencia will prove they are the real deal on the world's biggest stage. Valencia win 3-1.
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