So, it had to happen sooner or later, didn’t it? Manchester United have been drawn against Real Madrid in the Round of 16.

These are the games that the European Cup is all about, playing against massive clubs, with great history and cracking players. Our fans will get a night at the Bernabéu and Sir Alex Ferguson will get to see if he can outmaster the self-proclaimed Special One.

For some reason or another, Jose Mourinho has struggled to get the best out of his superstars this season, with them 3rd in the league and already a massive 13 points behind league leaders Barcelona.

Cristiano Ronaldo has scored an impressive 14 goals in 16 games but that hasn’t been enough to carry Real Madrid through. They’ve won just 10 of their 16 games and Mourinho has already conceded the title.

Ferguson has squared up to a Mourinho team in Europe twice before. On the first occasion, we were absolutely robbed by the officials, and were unjustly knocked out by Porto. Then we played against Inter Milan who were the current Italian champions at the time and who went on to win Serie A by 10 points that season. We drew 0-0 away and comfortably beat them 2-0 at home.

Being entirely honest, I always hope for the easiest draw possible. These days our first XI just isn’t up there with the very best in Europe and I’d much rather the easiest route possible. But of course there is appeal in playing a side like Real Madrid. It will nice to see Ronaldo again for the first time since he left us for Madrid in 2009. It will be a good test for the manager to see if he can outwit Mourinho.

And whenever you may feel nervous about our next game, remember that if the 6th best team in England can win the Champions League, anything is possible…