Manchester United-Chelsea: Beauty Vs. Beast?

It has been a long and at times, arduous season for both Manchester United and Chelsea and they finish it all off with the final of the Champions League at the Luzhniki Stadium.

It will be an enthralling game without a doubt, but will it be one for the purists?

I'm sure that everyone remembers the meeting between the two teams last year in the FA Cup Final, where the game was eventually won with a superb move from Drogba in extra-time. That game wasn't exactly exciting or fun to watch for the neutrals, and it featured very few goal scoring chances for either team.

Manchester United have been the team to beat all season. They've played some superb football in Europe and have managed to beat Barcelona en route to the finals. Cristiano Ronaldo has been prolific, as ever. Manchester United only really faced a real test in the first leg of the semifinals in the Nou Camp but, other than that, they've beaten their opponents with ease in the other rounds.

Chelsea, on the other hand, have been the underdogs for the majority of the season. They've been efficient and have ground out the results in the Champions League. They did have tricky games against Fenerbahce and Liverpool but overcame them eventually.

This raises the question: Is the Final game going to be a fight between the passing and movement of Manchester United and the raw power and athleticism of the Chelsea side?

The final will probably be a carefully thought out and strategised game. Sir Alex Ferguson has been there and done that in terms of winning the Champions League, albeit with a huge chunk of luck in 1999.

Avram Grant has not been given the credit that he deserves and has done a remarkable job at Chelsea considering the unstable circumstances.

Manchester United will probably go for the 4-4-1-1 with Rooney and Tevez up front. Chelsea could go in with a similar formation or with Anelka up front alongside Drogba. I feel that Anelka's presence will be better for Chelsea, but Grant has often left him out of the starting eleven in crucial games.

There are going to be individual battles all over the pitch and it is going to be very difficult to predict who will win those. It will be tight and cagey for the first few minutes, without a doubt. I hope that it remains eleven vs eleven for the duration of the match. Referees in Europe are far too fussy and love to brandish cards whenever they get the opportunity.

Avram Grant's tactical acumen is not up to Sir Alex's level. He's done a great job at Chelsea but he has made some strange decisions, like playing Anelka on the left side of midfield a couple of times this season. Sir Alex on the other hand has a well-drilled, determined outfit which is high on confidence after winning the Premier League.

The game, like any other between two big teams will be decided in the center of the park and that will be the key battle to watch out for. Manchester United will probably be the more attacking of the two teams with Chelsea looking to counter-attack.

All in all, it makes for a fascinating encounter. I just hope that it proves to be the proverbial advert for the English game.

It probably will be a battle between the movement and pace of the Manchester United team and the sheer power of the Chelsea team at the end of the day.

Provided that the pitch doesn't act up and the refereeing is up to scratch, this game should be a cracker. Let's just hope that after a fairly enthralling tournament until now, the final lives up to its billing.

I just have a strange feeling that this game won't be decided in regulation time. It could go all the way to penalties!

That would be fun to watch for the neutrals, wouldn't it?