Champions League semi-final? More like a testimonial

Manchester United are looking for a fourth European Cup

Manchester United 4-1 Schalke (6-1 agg)

Champions League semi-finals are not meant to be this easy.

But the way Manchester United dispatched of Schalke will even have made the great Barcelona sit up and take notice.

In essence, the tie was over as soon as the final whistle was blown in the first leg.

Everyone knew it, and Sir Alex Ferguson proved as much in his team selection for the second leg as he made eight changes from the side that faced Arsenal.

On first glance at the starting line-up, the German side should have believed they were in with a slight chance of upsetting the odds and launching a remarkable comeback, but the Red Devils snuffed that possibility out emphatically.

Schalke did improve from the first leg in this game, but in truth they couldn't have played any worse.

Even this performance was nowhere near up to semi-final standard and so it is something of a mystery as to how they made it so far.

Their one shining light from the first leg, goalkeeper Manuel Neuer, suffered a complete change in fortunes in this leg as two costly errors cost his side goals.

Neuer had been lauded as the world's best goalkeeper after the first leg

Perhaps he had lost any belief after the first leg and lacked the motivation to perform as well in the return leg, but this display will have done him no favours in his desire to gain a high-profile move in the summer.

United was touted as a possible destination for the German number one but his mistakes here will have raised serious doubts about his quality which may scupper his hopes.

This may just have been an off night for him - all goalkeepers, indeed footballers have them - but it came at the worst possible time. This should have been his moment in the shop window.

After Antonio Valencia had opened the scoring, with the Schalke defence nowhere to be seen after a superb through-ball by Darron Gibson, any hopes of a miraculous comeback were all but extinguished.

But those hopes were well and truly crushed five minutes later as Neuer allowed Gibson's shot, which was straight at him, through his hands and into the net.

Neuer did make some characteristically good saves in the game, most notably from Anderson, but his performance overall was a world away from that of a week ago.

His side were handed a lifeline before the interval, with Jose Manuel Jurado's stunning strike an indicator of the quality Schalke do possess going forward.

But they never looked likely to score again.

Blame can again be laid at Neuer's door for United's third goal after Anderson's rebound shot somehow slithered past him, but the tie was long since over.

Anderson did his chances of earning a starting spot at Wembley no harm

Anderson doubled his tally in a United shirt in just one night as he added a fourth, converting Dimitar Berbatov's fantastic ball to put the icing on a considerably large cake.

Overall, there was a testimonial-type atmosphere to this game, with the United crowd singing the names of former heroes like Andy Cole, David Beckham and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. This was bizarre in a Champions League semi-final but indicative of United's dominance.

Ferguson took something of a gamble by changing his team so dramatically, but will feel more than vindicated with the outcome.

Squad players like Anderson, Chris Smalling, John O'Shea, Jonny Evans and Darron Gibson all impressed and staked their claims for a regular starting slot. This is a welcome headache for Ferguson who had been concerned earlier in the season at the level of depth in the squad.

By performing so well at such a high level - despite the tie appearing over it was still a Champions League semi-final - the fringe players have shown their manager they can be relied on to play when needed.

Gibson was particularly impressive.

Gibson will turn 24 later this year

He did not have the greatest week leading up to the game, after leaving Twitter following abuse from his own fans, but answered his critics in the best possible way with a flawless display.

His talent has been doubted ever since he broke onto the Manchester United first-team scene but performances like this will go a long way towards changing the perspective of him.

Schalke were extremely disappointing over the two legs, showing little of the quality which saw them through against Valencia and Inter Milan, with the lack of service given to Raul a particular failure.

Raul was given no service against Manchester United

The most prolific marksman in Champions League history had been instrumental in the German side's progress but was given no opportunity to show his talents as his team-mates could not use the ball well enough when in possession.

Raul worked hard - often appearing on the left - but was pretty anonymous over the two legs when the team needed to bring out the best in him.

As for United, they now march into their third Champions League final in four years, a terrific achievement.

One thing which springs to mind among all this is the lack of credit given to the club's owners.

There are worries about the level of debt racked up by the Glazers but on the pitch, their contribution can not be criticised.

They have backed Sir Alex Ferguson when he has needed it and kept together a team consistently able to challenge for honours, so perhaps some of the criticism levelled at them should now calm down.

Of course, a large part of the consistency is down to Ferguson.

Sir Alex Ferguson could be set for a third Champions League triumph

He is the figure who keeps United performing and his record at Old Trafford must surely be the most remarkable in the history of football.

You get the sense he is almost taken for granted at Old Trafford but when he does finally retire his loss will be felt enormously. They won't be half the team without him.

As soon as United's passage to Wembley was confirmed, thoughts immediately turned to the final against Barcelona, a repeat of the 2009 final.

Ferguson insists his side have learnt lessons from that night in Rome, where United were passed to death and put to the sword, and now has the chance to prove it.

Barcelona are a fantastic side but have shown signs recently of tiredness and Ferguson will be hoping his side can exploit this.

One thing which may count against United is the fact they are in a title race when Barcelona have virtually already won their league.

This means Barca will have the chance to rest players and play below their maximum level while United will be slugging it out in a desperate effort to hold onto the lead in the title race.

This could work both ways, though, as Barcelona may not be match fit by the time they get to Wembley.

Pep Guardiola will have to make sure his side do play somewhere near their maximum level in the lead-up to the final to ensure there is no rustiness in their biggest game of the season. It is a tough balance to achieve.

Guardiola's Barcelona saw off rivals Real Madrid in the semi-finals

Guardiola was at Old Trafford for the semi-final against Schalke but will only have learned of the strength in depth United have.

The team Sir Alex Ferguson put out in this game is likely to be almost unrecognisable from that he will put out at Wembley, and that should worry Barcelona as if their second string is this impressive, how good must the first team be?

United will certainly start as underdogs but this may suit them. The pressure will all be on Barcelona and their superstars.

Ferguson may have to calm his natural desire to attack, as Barcelona will likely tear them apart if they play gung ho, but in a one-off situation the Spanish side are beatable.

Arsenal beat them at the Emirates Stadium and that should fill United with confidence.

Of course, they will have to stop Lionel Messi - now widely regarded as one of the best players ever - but as Ferguson said in the aftermath of the Rome final, it is Xavi and Andres Iniesta who truly do the damage.

Messi, Iniesta and Xavi were recognised as the best three players in the world at the FIFA Ballon d'Or gala in January

It will be crucial United do not allow them time on the ball to get their passing game flowing. This is a thankless task but they need to do it to stand any chance.

Manchester United versus Barcelona is the game the world wanted to see in the final, and it should be a wonderful festival of football providing the likes of Nani and Sergio Busquets are not in a play-acting mood.

It should be a beautiful game but United must do everything in their power to stop Barcelona playing the way they want.

Otherwise it could get a bit Messi.