Cristiano Ronaldo has acknowledged that he is struggling to control his "anger" in the face of rough treatment by opposing defenders, with the Manchester United forward admitting that he needs to work on his temperament.
Ronaldo's calm is likely to be tested tomorrow night in United's last-16 Champions League game at home to Internazionale and he has lost his cool at times this season. He appeared, for instance, to aim kicks at Tottenham Hotspur's Michael Dawson and Blackburn Rovers' David Dunn, though no disciplinary action has been deemed necessary.
"I am a target of course so it is difficult to avoid certain things," Ronaldo was quoted by the Sun. "I try to control my anger. Sometimes it's not easy, though, and it is something I have to improve on. Sometimes it is difficult because of the atmosphere in the stadium and the importance of the game. I'm only 24 but I have a lot of experience of big games and that helps because you learn through situations."
He emphasised that he was not cowed by being fouled. "If someone kicks me, I get up and I go again," he said. "I am not afraid of being kicked — it is part of the game. I see it as a challenge that they have to kick me to stop me."
Ronaldo expressed confidence in United's ability to see off Inter at Old Trafford after a 0–0 draw in the first leg and his team-mate Paul Scholes has called for the side to repeat their performance against Barcelona in last season's Champions League semi-final as they seek to reach the quarter-finals tomorrow.
Then, as now, they drew the first leg away 0–0 and went on to beat the Catalan side 1–0 at Old Trafford to book what turned out to be a night of glory at the Luzhniki Stadium last May.
"It probably was the perfect way to play a home leg after a goalless draw," said Scholes. "We did well to get the draw in the first place because Barcelona is such a tough place to go, then we defended really well and got the goal at home, which, in a European tie, was ideal. We will take that again on Wednesday."
The sight of Scholes on the bench at Fulham on Saturday hinted at a place in Sir Alex Ferguson's starting line-up , with the same also true of Ryan Giggs, while the places of Dimitar Berbatov and Cristiano Ronaldo appeared assured.
Rio Ferdinand, though, limped off with an ankle injury at Craven Cottage and, although there have been positive sounds from United's training complex, Ferguson will wait before making an assessment of the England defender.
At least United have Jonny Evans to come in, as he did for the first leg when Nemanja Vidic – who has again been linked with Milan – was suspended. Evans was outstanding at San Siro, although United are still cursing their failure to take advantage of their dominance by grabbing an away goal.
Inter's captain, Javier Zanetti, says his team are ready for the "match of our lives" at Old Trafford, even if they have to field a reshuffled back four. The central defenders who started Saturday's Serie A 2–0 win away to Genoa, Nicolás Burdisso and Marco Materazzi, will not travel to Manchester after sustaining injuries. However, the first-choice pair of Cristian Chivu and Walter Samuel could yet return in their place, after missing the draw with United a fortnight ago.
"Samuel's recovery is more likely than Chivu's," said Zanetti, who will back the midfielder Esteban Cambiasso as a defensive stand-in if required. "Playing with Esteban is easy because he's a very tactical player."
Injuries apart, Zanetti felt Inter's weekend trip was perfect preparation. "It was a great training session because Genoa play in a very similar way to Manchester [United]," he said. "We will have to play the perfect match because at the moment this is the 'match of our lives' in the Champions League.
"We won't be playing for a 0-0 draw because if you do that, Manchester will get a goal sooner or later. We'll have to stay in the match throughout and avoid leaving open spaces."
Zlatan Ibrahomivic played a big part in Inter becoming the second team to win at Genoa in the league this season. The Swedish international chipped in the opening goal after two minutes and set up Mario Balotelli for the second in the 61st minute. "We're very confident," said the 27-year-old Swede. "We want to win every game and we are going to Manchester to win. United are a good team so it will be very difficult. We have to win or draw to go through, but I don't think that any team really plays for a draw."
