Ahead of the last-16 Champions League tie between Real Madrid and Manchester United next Wednesday, Jamie Redknapp explains how Alex Ferguson’s men can beat Real
Pester Alonso
“Xabi Alonso is the man who makes it all tick for Madrid. Wayne Rooney, who naturally plays deep, might be tasked with dropping back to put pressure on the Spaniard. It’s simple; you need to stop Alonso from orchestrating that midfield.”
Take pot-shots
“It looks like the injured Iker Casillas won’t feature; a big bonus for United. Madrid’s other keeper, Antonio Adan, looks useless, and emergency new signing Diego Lopez could be nervy on the night, too. If I were Sir Alex, I’d tell my attackers to shoot as often as they can.”
Contain Cristiano
“Given space, Ronaldo can destroy you. So, it could be Phil Jones’s job to do the same thing he did against Gareth Bale recently and drop into defensive midfield, doubling up with Rafael to contain the Portuguese. Jones (pictured) has pace, he’s strong and can cover ground quickly. He could well be United’s hero.”
Expose the wingbacks
“Madrid hit the ball wide and their full-backs like to push on. United’s job is to break quickly, expose those holes at the back and provide balls from the flanks for Robin Van Persie to score. There’s no doubt United can find the net.”
Watch the match live on Sky Sports 2 HD on 13 February
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