Tuesday, 15th March, 2011
Didier Deschamps has played down Marseille’s chances of beating Manchester United in the Champions League tonight. The tie is delicately poised at 0-0 heading into the contest at Old Trafford, but Deschamps is still worried about United’s power on their home turf.
Asked whether the French champions can beat United, Deschamps wanted only to look closely at the statistics for his answer.
"If I refer to the statistics, it will be complicated", said Deschamps.
"That’s 25 matches Manchester have not lost at Old Trafford and they have conceded just one goal in the Champions League this season.
"When this team began its campaign in the Champions League it was for the win. It is part of four or five competitions that they have a realistic chance of winning. It would be logical that Manchester qualifies, but we have a little luck and we’ll play hard."
Marseille will surely need to score at Old Trafford, a task Deschamps has already pinpointed as extremely difficult. Indeed, an exit to United would not be greeted by dismay on the French south coast as retaining their Ligue 1 title remains the bigger priority.
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