Manchester United take on Schalke in the second leg of their Champions League semi-final on Wednesday with a two-goal advantage. Progression to the final looks a mere formality but could there be a late twist in the tie?

United have shown only glimpses of their best form this season but they hit the heights in no uncertain terms against the Germans in the first leg last week and, but for Schalke keeper Manuel Neuer, could have doubled their goal tally at the Veltins-Arena.

Their passing and movement off the ball was as good as it has ever been and the only disappointing factor on the night was the number of chances that went begging.

But far from building on that success, the Red Devils went and lost to Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium to allow Chelsea back into the Premier League title race.

Will that reverse affect them at all on Wednesday? Probably not, as Sir Alex Ferguson will no doubt try to drum into his charges that this is a totally different kettle of fish and they hold all the aces thanks to the two goals scored in Gelsenkirchen.

A United performance anywhere near the quality of last week’s away-leg showing and Schalke will be blown away, but it has to be remembered that the Bundesliga side did put five goals past Inter Milan at the San Siro in the quarter-finals (United 4/9 to beat Schalke).

It is open to question whether or not they could ever repeat that performance, and how good Inter actually are, but Fergie will take no chances and will look to go for the jugular with a couple of early goals at Old Trafford.

The Scot would love to kill off the contest by half-time in order for him to rest some key players ahead of what has now become the most important Premier League game of the season when Chelsea come calling on Sunday.

Conversely, Blues boss Carlo Ancelotti will be hoping that Schalke can do them a favour and stretch the tie out for as long as possible.

It is likely that Wayne Rooney will partner Javier Hernandez once more up front, as the pair ripped the Schalke rearguard to pieces seven days ago, but Dimitar Berbatov will probably see some action if there are early goals after recovering from injury.

The Germans will need to score early to have any chance of rescuing the tie and it is almost inconceivable that the hosts will not put at least one in the back of the net, making an already difficult task virtually impossible for Ralf Rangnick’s side.

But, being German, Schalke will never give up and surely they cannot play as badly as they did on their own patch last week?

United still have plenty to play for this season and will want to put down a marker for the final if, as seems likely, they go on to face Barcelona, and will be looking for a solid display with no slip-ups at the Theatre of Dreams (Barcelona 8/15 to win Champions League).

One defeat will not cause panic in the ranks, as they have been in pressure situations before on numerous occasions both domestically and in Europe, and what better way is there to bounce back from defeat to the Gunners than putting on another scintillating display to show the world just how good they actually are.

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