Sun shines on the team at Old Trafford

 
In spite of the clouds and rain which have threatened all day long in the Manchester sky, Frank Rijkaard’s men have been able to train this evening in the Old Trafford sunshine.
Old Trafford was the venue this Monday for a training session for FC Barcelona’s first team, which as usual on the day before a game was open to the media for the first 15 minutes. In that time the players did the warm-up and keep-ball exercises that have been a standard part of Barça training sessions for years.

The session this Monday evening is the last before the decisive return leg in the Champions League semi-final kicks off tomorrow evening at 8.45 pm. Just like the first leg in the Camp Nou, the fixture is to be played at a first-class facility.

The grass

As is usually the case at British grounds, the condition of the grass at Manchester United’s stadium is excellent. Old Trafford uses grass treatment systems which are very similar to those employed at the Camp Nou including artificial light which is used to simulate spring-like temperatures.

Media expectation

As happened at the Camp Nou in the first leg, media expectation has been massive. No sooner had they reached the ground than coach Frank Rijkaard and full-back Gianluca Zambrotta spoke at packed press conferences, as would be expected at a Champions League semi-final between two of Europe’s biggest teams.

Both Zambrotta and Rijkaard then did flash interviews for the TV stations which are to broadcast the match in Spain and in Britain.