Sir Alex Ferguson would have been delighted with the news that Cristiano Ronaldo and Darren Fletcher trained today and will travel to Spain. Dimitar Berbatov (hamstring) and Gary Neville (groin) are out of the trip through injury, and Edwin Van der Sar is being rested. Long term absentees Wes Brown (ankle), Owen Hargreaves (knee) and Paul Scholes (knee) are still missing.

Possible line up: Kuszczak, Evra, Rafael, Ferdinand, Vidic, Fletcher, Carrick, Ronaldo, Park, Rooney, Tevez.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Villarreal C.F.: It’s been a busy few weeks for Diego López between Villarreal’s sticks. The giant goalkeeper has been afforded little or no protection by an El Submarino Amarillo backline that has forgotten how to defend. The ex-Real Madrid man hasn’t been completely blameless in this slide into defensive bedlam. He hardly cut a reassuring figure when the sides met in Manchester, with his poor distribution putting his team on the back foot all evening. A clean-sheet was kept that night due to some excellent shot-stopping. A repeat performance will seal Villarreal’s passage into the next round.

Manchester United: All eyes will be on Wayne Rooney as he returns to the Madrigal. His last visit to the ground ended in disgrace as he was sent off for a sarcastic gesture to the referee. A repeat of such petulance is the last thing his manager will want with Dimitar Berbatov injured, Cristiano Ronaldo struggling for fitness and Carlos Tevez badly out of form. Villarreal’s shaky backline should grant him opportunities. United’s prospects will hinge on whether the Scouser spurns or gratefully accepts them. His shocking miss against Villa at the weekend hardly fills one with confidence though.

PREDICTION

If both teams play to their potential, this should be a great game with plenty of goal-line action.

Villarreal’s defence has been a mess in the last few weeks, and I can see this weakness being punished by the Red Devils.

United might not be firing on all cylinders at the moment, but they should have enough ammunition to sink El Submarino Amarillo.

Villarreal C.F. 1-2 Manchester United