Aston Villa are confident they can beat an injury-hit Man United
Bulgaria's Dimitar Berbatov leaving the pitch after suffering an injury during Wednesday's friendly against Serbia. The Man Utd striker is just one of several regular Red Devils who will have to miss the Aston Villa match because of injury. -- PHOTO: REUTERS
LONDON: Ending 13 years of frustration against Manchester United suddenly does not seem so daunting for Aston Villa, after winning at Arsenal last week for the first time since 1993.
Especially with United rocked by injuries to key players.
The £31 million (S$71.07 million) Dimitar Berbatov is out after hurting his hamstring on international duty with Bulgaria in midweek; and Wayne Rooney is doubtful as he recovers from a chest infection.
Cristiano Ronaldo, along with Nani and Anderson, may not be in the best shape after Wednesday's exertions in faraway Brazil.
In defence, there are more woes for United manager Alex Ferguson. Wes Brown is out for five weeks after surgery on his ankle, and Rio Ferdinand is bothered by back trouble.
The injuries come at a bad time for United, whose away form has been less than impressive. They have won two games, drawn two and lost two.
Already eight points behind leaders Chelsea and Liverpool - who face far easier opponents today - the Red Devils can ill afford to lose the Villa clash.
A Villa win would see the hosts leapfrog United with the teams being separated by just one point.
Said Ferguson, who will be serving a two-match touchline suspension after being found guilty of improper conduct for a post-match rant at a referee:
'I think Villa have a chance of breaking into the top four. I thought their performance against Arsenal was outstanding last week and I expect a difficult challenge.'
Added winger Ryan Giggs: 'We can't really afford any more mistakes. And Villa have some really dangerous players, especially going forward - Agbonlahor, Carew, Young.'
Arsenal found the pace of Gabriel Agbonlahor and Ashley Young too much to handle last week.
Curtis Davies marshalled the defence with aplomb while Steve Sidwell and Gareth Barry controlled the middle of park.
And today, Villa will add the physical presence of Norway striker John Carew up front, after he sat out the Arsenal win with a back injury.
Not that Villa manager Martin O'Neill, who has been touted as Ferguson's successor, is getting carried away. He said it would be 'tantamount to disaster' should Villa start making bold predictions about having arrived in the big time.
'The top four is exceptionally difficult. If it were easy, then everyone would be doing it,' he said.
'The league table at the moment is still very, very tight. You couldn't get carried away. It is impossible. The Premier League is too grand.'
He believes United, with their experience of handling big-game situations, also have the edge.
'That's the way it is. Big teams have the consistency, they have the big squads, they are able to deal with setbacks in a manner that sets them apart.'
Villa have lost their last 11 Premier League encounters with the Red Devils - their last success coming on the opening day of the 1995-96 season. Then, Ian Taylor, Mark Draper and Dwight Yorke contributed to a 3-1 win.
But defender Luke Young says the history books are there to be ripped up.
'We go into it full of confidence now after a tough game at Arsenal. We won't be sitting back, we'll be going to attack them and win the match,' he said.
ASSOCIATED PRESS, AGENCE-FRANCE PRESSE
Aston Villa v Manchester United Live, Ch27, tomorrow, 1.25am
