Having won the first leg 1:0 at Stamford Bridge, Manchester United are the favourites to make it to the Champions League semi-finals, but Chelsea are not entirely without chances. Everything suggests we will see another tight game between two evenly matches sides, with the final outcome very hard to predict.

Six in a row

Manchester United are on the road to make this a very successful season, which didn’t look very likely when Sir Alex Ferguson’s men put in several under-par performances in the opening exchanges of the season. However, they kept getting better with time and are now making giant strides towards three major titles. Premiership trophy is virtually done and dusted after three straight wins saw United move seven points clear of Arsenal, whereas they are set to face City in the FA Cup semi-finals. The Red Devils also made a giant step towards Champions League semi-finals, having beaten Chelsea 1:0 in the first match and all that’s left is to finish the job. United have been in remarkable form lately, having won six straight games in all competitions, with the return of Rio Ferdinand helping stabilize the back line that had had a lot of problems in his absence.

The hosts will have Wayne Rooney back from domestic ban, while Rio Ferdinand also returns having been rested against Fulham. Darren Fletcher has resumed training and he could play some part against Chelsea.

Still no Champions League glory for Blues

Chelsea have won a number of major trophies since Roman Abramovich took over, but Champions League title remains just a dream for the Blues. Manchester United already stopped them from winning the coveted title once and they are on the road to do that again, having won the first leg 1:0. Considering that matches between these two teams are always really tight affairs, the Blues would have a decent chance of overturning the deficit if they were on top of their form, but since Carlo Ancelotti’s side largely struggles in the scoring department, I certainly wouldn’t bet on them winning this tie. Fernando Torres is getting more and more frustrated by the lack of goals, as are other players, while even Carlo Ancelotti admits that his side are lacking some team spirit. Chelsea players are not in the right state of mind, as witnessed by their poor performance against Wigan and everything suggests they will have problems in this match.

Yossi Benayoun has returned into action against Wigan and he will be in contention, but David Luiz is ineligible.

Verdict

Manchester United are on top of their game at the moment and they enter this match in much better spirits than their opponents. Chelsea have been largely struggling of late, especially in the scoring department and I don’t think they have what it takes to win at Old Trafford.

Our prediction: Home win

Odds: 2.25 (5/4)

Bookmaker: Bet365