Ground Reality
From Russia with love

By Nabeel Naqvi

If you call yourself a football fanatic of the highest order and you don't know the importance of 21st May 2008, then you were either sleeping during the past eight months or your claim is a mere sham.

This is the first time ever in the history of football that two English teams are locking horns for the prestigious UEFA Champions League title. This Wednesday two heavy weights from England, Manchester United and Chelsea, will re-write history in Moscow as they clash for the ultimate prize in European club football.

Manchester United have won the title once before in 1999 but it's the first time Chelsea have come this far. Owned by Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, Chelsea have a star-studded line-up that has world class players for every position; and qualifying for the final of the Champions League is an achievement in itself given the fact that at the start of the season Chelsea sacked their illustrious manger Jose Mourinho.

Mourinho's departure from Stamford Bridge came as a shock, not just for the fans of Chelsea, but also for the players and their season went from bad to worse in the beginning under new boss Avram Grant. But, the team somehow managed to not let it completely get out off their hands and eventually did what they could never achieve under, the self-proclaimed chosen one, Jose Mourinho.

Chelsea are one of the strongest teams in Europe, their goalkeeper is regarded as one of the best in the world and their defence features players like Terry, Carvalho, Ashley Cole and Ferreira.

Michael Ballack, Frank Lampard, Michael Essien, Claude Makelele and Joe Cole make up a midfield that has pace, strength, experience, charisma and creativity. Chelsea usually play with a 4-5-1 formation with the Ivorian marksman Didier Drogba upfront. And with Andriy Shevchenko and Nicolas Anelka in the squad they have enough fire-power to crack any defence.

Being the winner of the previous FA Cup, Chelsea qualified for the Champions League and were placed in Group B alongside Schalke, Rosenborg and Valencia. They topped the group with three wins and three draws out of the six matches. In the first knock-out round they eliminated Olympiakos over two legs and then in the last eight rounds, Turkish club Fenerbahce became their victim.

In the semifinals they were up against old foes Liverpool, who under Rafa Benitez have knocked them out twice at this stage before. This time around, however, it was Chelsea's turn. Though it was never easy, but Chelsea managed to beat Liverpool and book their place in the final.

Manchester United on the other hand, were up against the only non-English side that made it to the last four, Barcelona. United are famous for their flowing football. Their quick moves and attractive style of football has made them one of the biggest clubs in the world. Their strike partnership of Wayne Rooney and Carlos Tevez has attracted immense praise from all over the world this year. However, in Cristiano Ronaldo, Manchester United have arguably the best player in the world right now.

Ronaldo is essentially a winger but his tally of more than 40 goals this season is not just an extraordinary feat. It is something that has redefined the role of a winger in modern football. If United win the Champions League this year, it would for sure cement Ronaldo's claim to Kaka's -- World Player of the Year -- throne.

The reason behind Ronaldo and company's success this year was the audacious performance of their back four. With Ferdinand and Vidic in the centre of defence and Brown and Evra on the wings, United have a defence that can withstand a Chelsea onslaught. And, with slick passers like Carrick, Scholes and the hard-tackling Hargreaves, they can turn it into a counter attack in the blink of an eye.

United's ability to sulk the opposition's movement and unleash their forwards at lightening pace is what Chelsea would look forward to and Makelele would need to be at his best to break all such movements from the United front three. Meanwhile, one Manchester United player is on brink of creating history himself. If, Ryan Giggs appear in this year's final, he would break Sir Bobby Charlton's record for the most number of caps for United.