United, Real in quarter-final clash

LONDON:  Manchester United face the toughest possible test in their quest to regain the Champions League title they won in 1999 after being drawn against current holders Real Madrid in the quarter-finals.

Sir Alex Ferguson’s men will be away to the Spanish giants — nine-times winners of the competition - in the first leg of the double header, on April 8, with the return taking place at Old Trafford on April 23. Then if they pass that test the Reds will play the winners of the quarter-final between Juventus and Barcelona in the last four. There was a strong feeling at Old Trafford that United would face Real, European champions in three of the last five years and the current holders, who booked their place in the last eight on Tuesday with a 1-0 win over Lokomotiv Moscow in Russia.

The pairing with Real will see European football’s two biggest names go head-to-head for the fourth time. Their joint history dates back to United’s very first European campaign when they were bundled out of the European Cup semi-finals by Alfredo di Stefano’s brilliant side back in 1957. Many United fans believe that had it not been for the Munich air disaster the following year, their team would have challenged Real’s dominance of a competition they won for five successive years at its inception. Under the guiding hand of Matt Busby, the Old Trafford outfit gained some revenge for that earlier defeat when they eliminated the Spaniards in the semi-final en-route to capturing of the trophy for the first time in 1968.