Berbatov out of United trip to Villarreal

Manchester United will be without injured striker Dimitar Berbatov for today's Champions League clash at Villarreal but Cristiano Ronaldo has made the squad.

The European champions travel to Spain knowing a draw would send both teams through to the knockout phase with a game to spare so manager Alex Ferguson is unlikely to lose too much sleep over his depleted strike force.

Ronaldo suffered a leg injury late in Saturday's goalless draw against Aston Villa. The Portuguese forward trained yesterday and joined the 20-man squad for the flight to Spain.

Berbatov has a hamstring strain picked up playing for Bulgaria in midweek but Carlos Tevez is a handy replacement.

Defender Wes Brown is also out while midfielder Darren Fletcher is hopeful he will recover from a knee knock.

United and Villarreal, who drew 0-0 at Old Trafford in September, have eight points each, with Celtic and AaB Aalborg both on two.

If United and Celtic win, Villarreal must wait until the last round of group matches (Dec. 9-10) to try to secure progress while victories for the Spanish team and AaB would keep the holders waiting.

Villarreal have not had the ideal preparation as their unbeaten start in the Primera Liga came to an abrupt end with a 3-0 home defeat by struggling Real Valladolid on Saturday.

They were 3-0 down at half-time and coach Manuel Pellegrini was clearly more focused on today's clash as he withdrew midfielder Marcos Senna and former United striker Giuseppe Rossi for a second half where they made little attempt at a comeback.

Villarreal's ability to switch off at the back has led to some Jekyll and Hyde performances of late, like a 6-1 aggregate defeat in the King's Cup against Segunda B (third tier) Poli Ejido, and a 6-3 Champions League win at home AaB.

"These types of defeats always knock you but you have to know how to pick yourselves up again," Pellegrini said.

"The important thing is to work on our performance levels and to focus on qualifying for the next stage of the Champions League."

Villarreal's top scorer Joseba Llorente has joined Turkey striker Nihat Kahveci on the injury list which leaves former United frontman Rossi and Guillermo Franco to lead the line.

At the back Uruguay's Diego Godin is also out injured.