FATIH TERIM BELIEVES his Galatasaray side are capable of beating Manchester United at Old Trafford in the Champions League tonight.
The coach took inspiration from the likes of Besiktas, who beat United on their own turf in 2009 — albeit against a youthful starting XI.
However, Terim does regard Alex Ferguson’s team as the most successful in Europe and warned his players of the threat posed by two of their attacking stars.
“Fenerbahce and Besiktas got famous victories at this ground before and we had eliminated them in 1993,” Terim told reporters. ”We can repeat that success. For me, Manchester United is the most successful club in Champions League football. Last year’s failure doesn’t change that.
“I was there at the Camp Nou as the Galatasaray coach when they’d beaten Bayern Munich and claimed the Champions League trophy. They have the likes of Robin van Persie and Shinji Kagawa, who is a very special player in my opinion. We do not consider to use a man-to-man defence against their attacking weapons.”
Terim admitted Galatasaray would need to deliver an improved performance to stand a chance of avoiding defeat at the hands of the Red Devils, despite sitting top of the Turkish Super Lig table with an unbeaten record after four matches. The former national team boss insisted, however, that the result would not be decisive in determining the outcome of the group stage.
“This year, we’re the only Turkish club at the competition and thus, there’s a huge pressure on us as a team,” Terim said. ”I went on to become a successful manager thanks to my players’ good performances before. Our performances so far this season are not enough to clinch victory at Old Trafford. We need to build on it and improve. I want my players to put everything on the field and win this game. The result of this clash will not be decisive for the group. It just will mean a good start, or a bad one.”
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