Much has been made of the distances Manchester United will be required to travel in Group B when taking on rivals Besiktas and CSKA Moscow away from home but I don’t imagine the 2008 Champions League winners will be flying via Easy Jet short of leg room and they should have no problem whatsoever qualifying for the last 16.
United arrived in Rome in May bidding to become the first club to successfully defend the European Cup in the modern era but Sir Alex Ferguson’s side were comprehensively outplayed by a brilliant Barcelona side and they now must also, of course, prove they are good enough to compete with the best *sans *Cristiano Ronaldo.
Ronaldo, so often the match-winner for the Red Devils, has left for the Bernabeu and pastures new and while things will never quite be the same again the English club still have more than enough quality to lift the trophy for a third time in a little over a decade.
Michael Owen and Luis Antonio Valencia haven been recruited to fill the void left by Ronaldo, and to also compensate for the loss of Carlos Tevez who failed to sign a permanent deal, but while that pair alone may not be good enough to make an impact when it really matters the rest of the United squad has quality bursting at the seams.
The Premier League champions, 1.40 favourites with Betfred to top Group B, may well face their stiffest test from surprise Bundesliga reigning champions Wolfsburg and they were certainly the side from pot 4 everybody wanted to avoid when the draw was made in Monaco last Thursday.
Wolfsburg, as big as 67.0 to land the Champions League at the first time of asking, have new head coach Armin Veh at the helm following the departure of Felix Magath to Schalke and the German will be hoping that the star forward pairing of Edin Dzeko and Grafite continues to flourish.
The Bosnian-Brazilian combination propelled Wolfsburg to their first ever championship in 2009 and they have also signed former Newcastle striker Obafemi Martins who will increase the competition for places. Champions League inexperience may count against them but the Bundesliga is still among the elite in Europe and Wolfsburg must go well.
Much was expected form the hugely talented Zenit St Petersburg side that graced the group stage last season but they ultimately disappointed and CSKA Moscow, Uefa Cup winners in 2005, will represent Russia this time around alongside Rubin Kazan in Europe’s elite competition.
While there has been plenty of money pumped into Russian football over the past decade relative success at the highest level has still been limited and I expect CSKA to struggle. The loss of Yuri Zhirkov to Chelsea will hurt the side from the capital and Zico’s men have their work cut out to make the last 16. The manager’s fellow countryman Vagner Love has returned to Brazil and Palmeiras on a season long loan and they could also face stiff competition from a Besiktas side, as big as 19.0 with Bet 365 to top the group, for third spot.
Outright Odds:
Manchester United: 9.00 Sportingbet Wolfsburg: 67.0 Sportingbet CSKA Moscow: 201.0 William Hill Besiktas: 301.0 Bet 365
Group B Odds:
Manchester United: 1.40 Betfred Wolfsburg: 6.0 Ladbrokes CSKA Moscow: 11.0 Ladbrokes Besiktas: 19.0 Bet 365