Sir Alex Ferguson ‘quite happy’ for Manchester United to be second best to Barcelona

As the two sides prepare to meet in a friendly, the Scot does not mind that his side are ‘in second place’, but says the aim is for the Red Devils to match the Catalan club

Sir Alex Ferguson insists he is happy if Manchester United are second best to Barcelona at the moment, but maintains that the goal is for his side to match the Catalan club. The Spanish giants have won the Champions League twice in the last three years, and on both occasions they beat the Red Devils in the final of the tournament.

"I think their performances and their feats over the last two or three years have elevated them," Sir Alex said at a press conference. "In everyone's mind they are the best team, currently, in the world. "I'm quite happy to be in second place at this moment in time because that's our challenge. Our challenge will be to get to that level."

The two sides meet in a friendly on their pre-season tour of the USA in Washington DC on Saturday.

Friendly Match Vs FC Barcelona [Preview & Live Stream]

United face another severe examination against Pep Guardiola's princes...

Form guide

United have a 100 percent record on tour and the goals have flowed. The 4-0 battering of MLS All-Stars now means all the forwards who have played out in the US have managed to find the net at least once. Barca have already enjoyed more success in pre-season, getting past Internacional on penalties before defeating Bayern Munich 2-0 in the Audi Cup final with new sensation Thiago Alcantara scoring both goals.

Ins and outs

Sir Alex has promised he'll give lengthy run-outs to most of his stars ahead of the Community Shield on Sunday week. Javier Hernandez is ruled out after suffering concussion but wouldn't have played in any case. The boss has a tough choice in goal between David De Gea and Anders Lindegaard. Barca's Copa America stars are missing and that includes Lionel Messi, Javier Mascherano and Dani Alves amongst others as well as new signing Alexis Sanchez. Xavi is back in training after an injury lay-off and should be involved.

Last meeting

Wembley Stadium, 28 May 2011, the Champions League final. A masterful performance from the Catalans saw them to a comfortable 3-1 win thanks to goals from Pedro, Messi and David Villa. Wayne Rooney's superb response before half-time was, ultimately, in vain.

Top man

For all of Messi's magic, it's arguable that Xavi was man of the match at Wembley. The midfielder ran the show and orchestrated a superb team performance by dictating the tempo and pulling the strings. A wonderful footballer in the Paul Scholes mould, he is the man who makes Pep Guardiola's side tick - with able support from Andres Iniesta and, of course, Messi who won't feature.

Quote/unquote

"Players from both teams do not want to get hurt just before the start of the season so I do not think a feeling of revenge is a good idea" - Wayne Rooney.

Any sub-plots?

The question as to how to match Barcelona after two chastening Champions League final defeats will have been burning in Sir Alex's mind ever since the end of May. The three new signings - De Gea, Phil Jones and Ashley Young - are all available but most fans will be wondering if the boss has a new tactical plan in mind to take on a team that always dominates possession. It may be a friendly but it'll set some pointers at least for the new season.

Did you know?

United's famous rousing comeback in the 1984 European Cup Winners Cup quarter-final against Barcelona is the only competitive match Diego Maradona played in England - although he did figure in a friendly international against England at Wembley and a Football League v Rest of the World exhibition fixture at the old stadium.

The Washington match is live and exclusive here on UnitedBelievers with full coverage starting at Midnight tomorrow.

MLS All-Stars 0-4 Manchester United: Anderson, Park, Berbatov and Welbeck on target as Red Devils secure fourth tour win

Sir Alex Ferguson’s men won their fourth consecutive match on their tour of America as they cruised to a comfortable victory against an All-Star side including David Beckham

Manchester United eased to a fourth consecutive win on their tour of America with a 4-0 victory over the MLS All-Stars. Anderson and Park Ji-Sung gave United a 2-0 lead at the break, before further goals from Dimitar Berbatov and Danny Welbeck wrapped up the victory.

Former Arsenal striker Thierry Henry was the first of the MLS All-Stars to make an impact, cutting inside past Rio Ferdinand from the left before setting up David Beckham, who could only drag his shot wide of the post. It did not take long for United to stamp their mark on the game, though, with Anderson putting the Red Devils ahead on 20 minutes after excellent work on the edge of the area between Berbatov and Wayne Rooney.

Beckham came close to equalising in the first half for the All-Stars, but his second 25-yard effort of the game was tipped over by Anders Lindegaard. Despite the best attempts of Beckham & Co. to grab an equaliser before the break, Park doubled United’s lead on the stroke of half-time by firing past the keeper from just inside the area

United soon began to dominate in the second half, and Sir Alex Ferguson’s men went 3-0 up on 52 minutes. Berbatov received a pass from Rooney before seeing his chip over the goalkeeper strike the crossbar. But the striker was first to react, tapping home into an empty net. Just 16 minutes later, Welbeck sealed the win for United with a swerving strike from 20 yards out.

Beckham tried to find a consolation goal against his former club late on, but he could only curl a trademark free kick into the side-netting.