It may be strange for Beckham playing against us.

Tuesday's match against AC Milan is going to be a difficult one. You have two great European clubs steeped in history meeting each other in the Champions League.

AC Milan always rise to the challenge of playing in the European Cup. We've played each other a few times, though we've done better against Inter than AC Milan. It would be good to go to Milan and perform the way we've been doing in recent weeks.

You always look forward to playing the first leg away from home. Away goals can help you relax in the home tie - a 1-1 or 2-2 score is better than a goalless match. Of course, we are heading to Milan to try to win the match. The strange thing is that we have to wait three weeks until the return leg.

It's disappointing to have Ryan Giggs out injured for four weeks. It's going to be difficult without a player like Giggs with such experience and quality. He's been playing extremely well for us, especially in the big games, providing great passes and scoring goals.

It's a big blow but at the beginning of the season you have to prepare yourself for injuries that come at the worst moments. The 22-man squad has to be utilised throughout the season.

Both AC Milan and Manchester United have their own form in the domestic leagues but these tend to go out of the window when you play in these kinds of games.

The two clubs have a great history and will rise to the occasion. It's almost like the English FA Cup when you have certain teams raising the bar for individual matches. I don't think current league form is the biggest factor in this match. The clubs would want to perform to the absolute best of their ability.

AC Milan players have several fine players - the likes of Ronaldinho, Marco Boriello, Pato, Andrea Pirlo, David Beckham, Clarence Seedorf and Massimo Ambrosini. It's not a case of watching out for just one player. The last time we played them they had Kaka. Now they have Pato who is a top quality player.

Beckham's presence does not distract from the importance of the match. It's the first time he is facing Manchester United since he's left, so the media are going to hype it up and market it before the game. Of course, it's a good story for the press that he is returning to face us six years after such a good career with Manchester United. But I think once the match starts nobody would be thinking about it.

Will it be strange seeing him lined up against us? Not really. We have played against former team mates like my brother, Phil, and Nicky Butt, so you get used to it.

It may be stranger for Beckham but, of course, we wish him all the best. I spoke to him last week but we didn't discuss Tuesday's game.

Beckham always gives his utmost in any match he plays, irrespective of the opponents. He is a true professional and wants to do well for his club.

I also spoke to him when the draw was made and he was very excited about returning to Old Trafford. I'm sure it will be a special night for him.

He will get a fantastic reception when he returns to Manchester. Of course, the fans will remember the fact that he publicly said he doesn't want to play for any other club in England. He grew up as a Manchester United fan and played so well for the club.

Closing the gap at the top

We played most of the match against Aston Villa with 10 men, but I thought we actually looked like the only team that could win the match. We were dangerous at set pieces and were dangerous when we attacked. We drew the match but we closed the gap on Chelsea to one point.

We still have to play against Chelsea in April but the way things are going this season, teams are dropping points in between. We have to play Liverpool, Manchester City, Everton and Tottenham and we've got to make sure we do our job in all the games.

History has always shown that two teams are practically always involved in the final race to the league. I don't know if that's already the case since Arsenal are still in with a chance to catch up with us. Once we get into March and April, the race usually boils down to two.

People were saying we were facing a crisis four weeks ago. But we've been round the block too many times to show the crisis doesn't come in January; the crisis happens in May. The teams are still jockeying for positions and we still have a lot of hard work to do.

Over to you

Matthew Dougall, Sliema, writes:

To what extent do Manchester United players reflect on the thought that winning this year's league means overtaking Liverpool's league tally? How much of a motivating factor is it?

There are a number of milestones you always aim for. This season we could become the first team to win four titles on the run. We could overtake Liverpool's tally of 18 titles.

But that isn't the motivation. It is something you think about at times but it doesn't become your motivation to win the game.

You have to concentrate on every single game.

There's a long way to go and you don't talk about winning the championship midway through the season.

Send your questions to Gary Neville to sunday@timesofmalta.com