United target another rescue act against Barca

BARCELONA: Manchester United will need another great escape if they are to knock Barcelona out of the Champions League on Tuesday and reach the semi-finals.United coach Ole Gunnar Solskjaer completed the club’s most famous comeback at Camp Nou in 1999, when he scored the winner as United rallied from 1-0 down to beat Bayern Munich 2-1 and clinch Europe’s premier prize.Twenty years on, Solskjaer returns to Catalonia with his side trailing 1-0 again and needing an unlikely turnaround if they are to reach the tournament’s last four. “Of course it’s a fantastic memory for me. It’s the only time I’ve been on the pitch here,” Solskjaer said on Monday. “I don’t mind if we score in the 93rd minute again (on Tuesday). If we get to injury time, we are a fit team.”Ernesto Valverde has said Lionel Messi is fit and ready to play in the second leg as Barcelona bid to make the semis for the first time in four years. Messi was among 10 players rested for the goalless draw against Huesca on Saturday after a hefty challenge from United defender Chris Smalling last week left him with a swollen nose and cheek.“He is fine,” said Valverde. “He has recovered perfectly from the blow he suffered. He was fine after a couple of days. It is true that during the match he was a little stunned but he is in perfect condition and does not have any problems ahead of tomorrow’s game.”Valverde said Ousmane Dembele could also feature after he played 67 minutes against Huesca, having recovered from a hamstring injury. “I don’t know to what extent because he has been out for four weeks,” Valverde said. “But he is ready to play.”Barcelona have lost only one home game in the Champions League in 10 years, but United will draw hope from their last 16 comeback against Paris Saint-Germain, when they overturned a 2-0 first-leg defeat to go through.“That memory from PSG will help the players and us as a team, that we know we can turn things around,” Solskjaer said. “Barcelona here at the Nou Camp is a difficult prospect but the memory will live with the players. It’s not long ago.”Barca goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen is confident his team can avoid a repeat. “The good thing is we play differently to PSG,” he said. “But United are dangerous and the result from the first leg is dangerous, it is a very small advantage.”

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