ALEX FERGUSON had heard the distant thunder from over the Alps, and it sounded familiar. Internazionale in crisis? Their star striker stricken? Italian trepidation? "We've seen all these things before," noted the Manchester United manager. "Their fear of British crowds, the wind and the rain. It's a script." His preamble, by contrast, would be conducted pianissimo, any verbal crescendos saved for Wednesday night.
United's team talk, then, will steer clear of the personal history between Diego Simeone, Inter's streetwise Argentinian midfielder, and David Beckham; it will not fret over whether or not Ronaldo has travelled to Old Trafford; but it may include a short history lesson on modern Italian ways. In his photofit of Miracea Lucescu's team Ferguson has noticed, between the black and blue stripes, a touch of sepia. There was something 1980s about them, he suggested: "I think they're a typical throwback Italian side, with their sweeper and the man-markers." It's possible the feeling is mutual. United's 22 goals in the Champions League so far this season can look like a throwback to a more carefree age.
If United's has been an exhilarating ride thus far, the momentum now needs its checks and balances. They have been loose at the back in Europe. "We have a good confidence about ourselves," said Ferguson. "But there is a point you come to where it's the end of the road." In other words, the knockout stage brings different requirements and Italian opponents demand certain standards of respect. United's concern is that the errors which have punctuated their last two years in this competition be eliminated. The manager is all too familiar with the facts: early goals conceded against Monaco in last year's quarter-final, and against Borussia Dortmund in the 1996-97 semi-final, have effectively put United out at the two previous attempts. Add the first-minute head-start which they granted the last Italian visitors to Old Trafford, Juventus, and he knows it is a habit Inter will have spotted.
Experience would be the key, added Ferguson. "You hope the players have learned all the little lessons of Europe, about losing silly goals, about losing them at bad times. It happened to us at Barcelona this year, when Barca scored with their first kick of the ball. It's possibly to do with apprehension as they go into these big nights, and concentration levels. You hope that all these little bits of experience come to fruition on a night like Wednesday. There's no question about it, in terms of ability, they've got an outstanding chance."
It is a better chance than at this time last year, maintained Ferguson, first because of the additions to his squad - Jaap Stam, Dwight Yorke and Jesper Blomqvist - and second, because, barring any damage inflicted by Southampton yesterday, the manager would be choosing his XI from full resources. Injury and suspension kept Roy Keane out of the Dortmund and Monaco games in the last two years and other key individuals (Peter Schmeichel, Gary Pallister) were also missed at knockout stages in the past. Ferguson, extending his trip down memory lane, reckoned "we'd have beaten Monaco last season with a half-decent squad".
The comparisons between then and now encouraged him. "This is the best shape I've been in," he said. "For the first time at this stage of the competition, I've got no suspensions. With everyone fit, I'm picking the team I want to pick. All the big guns will be there."
Chief among them Ryan Giggs, now recovered from injury. "Ryan's a big-game player, who enjoys these occasions," enthused Ferguson, and one whose reputation among the Italians stands as high as any at Old Trafford. Juventus, who played Inter in Serie A yesterday, would be the first to say so.
Ferguson's brother, Martin, was at the San Siro last night, part of a scouting operation which has placed United representatives at every Inter match since December's quarter-final draw, a period in which the scudetto has apparently moved beyond their reach. "That doesn't matter to us," said the manager, confident he has covered all his bases. "You see the character of the side whether they're winning or losing. Inter are the type of Italian side who could play badly and still beat you."
They should be respected, certainly, for their resources in support of the attack, namely Roberto Baggio and Youri Djorkaeff, but they need not be flattered. "You respect anybody who'd played for France in the World Cup and Baggio has got a reputation which he's earned," said Ferguson. "You don't dismiss that. None the less we, hopefully, will express the ability our players have. I don't think we'll win without a very good team performance.
"Not losing a goal is vitally important for us. They will try and frustrate us and catch us on the counter-attack. This Inter team play entirely differently from Juventus and from Fabio Capello's great Milan sides who were dominant for the last five or six years. They are a throwback to that Italian mentality where the result matters, nothing else."
So much for the grand patterns of history; Ferguson would also recall that he was there when the modern Internazionale team put the single piece in their jigsaw from which all else was supposed to follow. It was when United last met Inter, a pre-season friendly settled on penalties some 20 months ago, when a debutant called Ronaldo became the most expensive professional to kick a football. Ronaldo, and his club, are still counting the cost.
