Man. United bid to become first team to retain trophy

Chelsea fans feel they have been denied a chance of another tilt at the Champions League and an all-English final against Manchester United after Norwegian referee Tom Henning Ovrebo failed to award them at least two blatant penalties in the semi-final return at Stamford Bridge against Barcelona earlier this month.

A repeat of last year's final was on the cards but in the end, Chelsea were left to curse their luck and Ovrebo's glaring mistakes.

In the other semi-final, second leg, Italian referee Roberto Rossetti was too harsh on Darren Fletcher, of Manchester United, who was sent off for what looked like a fair tackle on Arsenal's Cesc Fabregas at London's Emirates Stadium.

So, in Rome two of the strongest teams on the continent, Manchester United and Barcelona, will fight it out for the trophy, hoping for a more competent referee to stay clear of controversies.

It is not enough for UEFA president Michel Platini to say that he would have loved to watch a repeat of last year's final. Ovrebo was not the right man for the job.

Meanwhile, since UEFA revamped the European Cup and renamed it the Champions League 17 years ago, no club has succeeded in retaining the trophy. Current holders United will go flat out to become the first team to win it for two successive seasons and break new ground.

Where holders finished in season that followed

1991-92: Barcelona - second round
1992-93: Marseille - did not compete
1993-94: Milan - finalists
1994-95: Ajax - finalists
1995-96: Juventus - finalists
1996-97: Bor. Dortmund - semi-finalists
1997-98: Real Madrid - quarter-finalists
1998-99: Manchester United - quarter-finalists
1999-00: R. Madrid - semi-finalists
2000-01: Bayern Munich - quarter-finalists
2001-02: Real Madrid - semi-finalists
2002-03: Milan - quarter-finalists
2003-04: FC Porto - second round
2004-05: Liverpool - second round
2005-06: Barcelona - second round
2006-07: Milan - second round
2007-08: Manchester United

Man. United's path to Rome

Group matches:
Villarreal (home) 0-0
Aalborg (away) 3-0: Rooney, Berbatov 2
Celtic (home) 3-0: Berbatov 2, Rooney
Celtic (away) 1-1: Giggs
Villarreal (away) 0-0
Aalborg (home) 2-2: Tevez, Rooney

Second round:
Inter (away) 0-0
Inter (home) 2-0: Vidic, Ronaldo

Quarter-final:
Porto (home) 2-2: Rooney, Tevez
Porto (away) 1-0: Ronaldo

Semi-finals:
Arsenal (home) 1-0: O'Shea
Arsenal (away) 3-1: Park, Ronaldo 2

Head to head

United's past commitments with Barcelona are positive as the Red Devils can boast a cup final victory and last year's passage to the final at the expense of the mighty Catalans.

1983-84 (Cup Winners' Cup quarter-final): Away 0-2, Home 3-0 (Aggregate 3-2).

1990-91 (Cup Winners' Cup final): 2-1 (Hughes 2).

1994-95 (Champions League group): Home 2-2, Away 0-4 (one point).

1998-99 (Champions League group): Home 3-3, Away 3-3 (two points each).

2007-08 (Champions League semi-final): Away 0-0, Home 1-0 (Aggregate 1-0).

Top marksmen

Manchester United, who have superstars of their own, must also be on the watch for Barcelona's match-winner Lionel Messi, who is well on course to finish the tournament as the leading marksman, since those close behind him are not involved.

The top three top scorers are: 8 goals - Messi (Barcelona); 7 − Gerrard (Liverpool), Klose (Bayern Munich); 6 − Lisandro (Porto).