Destiny calls for Giggs

Trailing 2-1 after the first leg of their UEFA Champions League first knockout round tie against FC Porto, a 2-1 win against Fulham FC in the FA Cup has given uefa.com diarist Ryan Giggs hope as the focus switches to Old Trafford.

By Ryan Giggs

It is great to go into this week's Champions League game on the back of a good win against Fulham on Saturday. I must admit that our confidence had been affected by our recent form, but thankfully we got exactly the boost we were hoping for. I don't think it was our best performance by a long way on Saturday but that doesn't matter too much. We are through to the FA Cup semi-finals and back to winning ways - and that is all we are concerned with.

Major disappointment
We can look forward to Tuesday night's match at home to Porto with relish, but we all know it is a huge game for the club. Having reached the last eight of the Champions League for as many years as I can remember, it would be a major disappointment if we fail to get the result we need at Old Trafford.

Consistent form
The cup competitions appear to be our best chance of silverware this season and everyone knows that a second Champions League triumph would be the pick of the bunch. Our form in Europe has been consistently good for several seasons and despite our recent hiccups we still believe we are good enough to win this competition.

Keane absent
But first we have a very tricky test ahead in trying to overturn Porto's 2-1 lead. We played poorly in Portugal and were fortunate in many ways to come away with a narrow defeat. Quinton Fortune's away goal was a real lifeline and without it things could have been a lot, lot worse. We have to be grateful for that and make sure we put right the things that went wrong in the first leg. Roy Keane's absence is a blow, but thankfully we have other players capable of stepping into his shoes.

Magnificent McCarthy
It is a certainty that we will be out of Europe if we do not improve on our first-leg performance. Porto are a very good team and in Benni McCarthy they have a proven front player who can cause us problems if he is not looked after properly. He has been a top-class performer for many years and produced the goods in the first game, but we cannot let him do it again.

Away goal
But our crucial away goal has put us in touching distance of Porto and that is a real boost. When we play at Old Trafford we are always confident of getting a result because we know we will create plenty of chances. As long as we remain patient and take the chances when they come, I feel confident we will progress. We also need to stop Porto scoring and that will not be easy given the problems they caused us at their place - and our injury worries in defence.

All the way
But as always I have the belief that we will chalk up another Champions League win and continue our run in this brilliant competition. Winning the European Cup in 1999 was an amazing feeling and we have been dreaming of lifting it again ever since. I see no reason why we cannot go all the way if we get past Porto.

Ryan Giggs's personal website is at www.icons.com