Why Juve need to win

Despite their business empire and worldwide support, Manchester United have only won the European Cup (or Champions League) twice in their history.

"It is simply not good enough for a club of our size," says Sir Alex Ferguson. And the same goes for Juventus as well.

The recently-crowned Serie A champions are the Italian equivalent to United; enjoying massive support throughout the whole country and a tradition unsurpassed by any of their domestic rivals.

If United's special status has emerged from the Munich Air Crash, the 1950s also established Juve 'The Old Lady' at No1, helped by the legendary Welshman John Charles.

But while Real Madrid and the Milan clubs, AC and Inter, enjoyed frequent success in the big one - the European Cup - Juventus had to wait until 1985 to win it and even then their triumph, a 1-0 win against Liverpool, was totally overshadowed by the death of 38 fans before the game at Heysel.

Since then, Juventus have been kings of Europe only once more, beating Ajax on penalties in 1996 with a frontline of Gianluca Vialli and Fabrizio Ravanelli.

Manager Marcello Lippi is well aware that victory at Old Trafford is the only option. "I have been in three Champions League finals but one win out of three is not good, is it?" he says. "One out of four would be even worse."

Even reaching the knockout stages looked beyond Juve after they were brutally dismantled 3-0 in Turin by a rampant Manchester United.

Jeans-clad Alessandro Del Pierro watched injured and forlorn from the stands, Edgar Davids was outfought by Nicky Butt in midfield - Igor Tudor was taken apart by the running of Ryan Giggs, the world's most expensive goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon was helpless as Ruud van Nistelrooy finished the scoring.

But just as Real Madrid emerged from an indifferent period to win three European Cups in five years, Juve turned the corner incredibly. A last-minute winner by Tudor against Deportivo booked them a quarter-final place. And once there, the big stars in the Juventus team started to play.

David Trezeguet was outstanding as they won in Barcelona and scored a vital away goal in the Bernabeu against Real Madrid in the semi-final. Pavel Nedved was man-of-the-match as Juventus then beat the Spaniards 3-1 in Turin although a late foul on Steve McManaman will means he misses out on the final.

Lippi clearly believes however that his side - who finished seven points clear in Serie A - will win. "We are seeing the start of a new era of success at Juve. I can feel it," he says.

If anything, the Milan side facing them on Wednesday night is even more star-studded. World Cup winner Rivaldo will only be on the bench in a team that boasts Paolo Maldini, Rui Costa, Alessandro Nesta and Andrei Shevchenko.

Real Madrid's defence might have caved in when Del Piero and company went at them - but you can't imagine Maldini or Nesta folding.

And while Real had no replacement for defensive midfielder Claude Makalele, Milan will have the perfect extra security in the middle in the park in tough-tackling Gennaro Gattuso, who has had a new lease of life since leaving Glasgow Rangers.

"When Paolo Maldini is your team-mate, you never rest. He is an inspiration because of the way he trains and plays," says Gattuso. "When he talks, you wake up and listen."

Milan's team of the early 1990s was one of the best club sides to grace the European Cup - Gullit, van Basten, Rijkaard and of course Maldini and Alessandro Costacurta, who are still there.

They also scraped through to the final, former Newcastle forward Jon-Dahl Tomasson (injured for the final) scoring in the dying seconds to knock out Ajax in the quarter-finals.

Only Real Madrid have won the European Cup more times than Milan. The Milanese desperately want to win - Juventus have to.

Juventus v Milan - The Match Winners 

Filippo Inzaghi (AC Milan): Penalty-area poacher who scored the winner the last team these teams met in Serie A.

David Trezeguet (Juventus): One of the world's best strikers, scored France's winner in the Euro 2000 final - a golden goal against Italy

Alessandro Del Piero (Juventus): Stands second behind Raul in the number of Champions League goals scored. The Golden Boy of Italian football who set Juve on the way to their semi-final victory against Real Madrid

Andriy Shevchenko (AC Milan): Ukranian forward who was the top scorer in Serie A last season. Will forever be remembered for his semi-final goal against Inter - a vital away goal scored on his home ground

Marco Di Vaio (Juventus): Has the awesome responsibility of filling the shoes of Pavel Nedved, has already scored against AC Milan when Juventus beat them 2-1 at home earlier this season.

Rivaldo (AC Milan): Been only a bit-part player since his summer move from Barcelona but he is the ultimate big-match player and nobody will be surprised if he comes off the bench to turn the game.

by Joe Bernstein

European Cup Wins - by club