Sir Alex Ferguson has claimed Roman Abramovich is "obsessed" with winning the Champions League. Chelsea have lost four semi-finals and also the 2008 final to Manchester United since Abramovich bought the club in 2003 and will have their hopes ended for another year unless they can overturn a first-leg deficit in their quarter-final at Old Trafford.
If they do go out, many believe Carlo Ancelotti will get sacked in Abramovich's quest for European success. But Ferguson feels the Chelsea owner has set himself a stiff target.
"It does seem to be an obsession with Chelsea to win the European Cup," Ferguson said. "That is why they signed Fernando Torres. The owner has very much nailed his colours to the mast in that respect. I have felt that for quite a while with him.
"To have an obsession of winning the European Cup is stretching yourself a wee bit. At the end of the day it is a very difficult competition to win. But I can understand it because I had the obsession myself for quite a while. I lost semi-finals and you say to yourself you are never going to do it. When we achieved it in Barcelona [against Bayern Munich in 1999], it was the greatest feeling of all time. It took the monkey off my back."
This season, as then, Ferguson's side have the Premier League title and FA Cup to go for as well, should it go wrong against Chelsea, but that does not diminish his desire.
"Chelsea are no more desperate than Manchester United, believe me," he said. "For any club when the expectations are high you come to a situation where it is all or nothing. People talk about us winning the league but we are desperate to win this game."
"A British team coming here is different," he continued. "Though Juventus and Milan have played here a few times over the years, Chelsea play here every year. In that respect there is a familiarity about it. The stadium, the size of the pitch, the condition of the pitch, all these things are in their favour over other European teams."
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