If Manchester United is to reach a third Champions League football final in four years, it must overcome both surprise package Schalke 04 and a dismal record against German teams.
United visits Schalke in its semifinal first leg on Tuesday, bidding to reach the final at Wembley 43 years after it beat Benfica there to become the first English champion of Europe.
Schalke stunned holder Inter Milan 7-3 on aggregate in the quarterfinals though, and it has little to lose ahead of United's trip to the Veltins Arena.
It is the first time the Gelsenkirchen club has appeared in the last four of Europe's premier cup competition, but it will take heart from United's historic struggles against German opposition.
Despite having memorably beaten Bayern Munich to win the final of the 1999 tournament, Sir Alex Ferguson's men are yet to win in four two-legged ties against German teams.
Bayern accounted for United at the quarterfinal stage in both 2001 and 2010, but more appropriate comparisons can be made with its semifinal defeats by Borussia Dortmund, in 1997, and Bayer Leverkusen, in 2002.
On both occasions United was strongly tipped to progress, only to lose 2-0 on aggregate to eventual champion Dortmund in 1997 and goes out on away goals against Leverkusen five years later.
Dangerous mentality
Ferguson will be acutely aware of the similarities and he will also be wary of the dangerous have-a-go mentality forged in the Schalke ranks during its astonishing 5-2 first-leg success at Inter in the previous round.
“The German teams have always had that resilience and determination about them and that will be exactly the same on Tuesday night,” said Ferguson.
“We're going into this game with far more experience than we have in previous years and our record away from home in the last few years has been terrific.”
Whatever happens on Tuesday, something will have to give, as Schalke has a 100 per cent home record in this season's competition while United is yet to concede a goal on its travels.
Manuel Neuer will be the man seeking to keep United at bay and Ferguson is thought to be an admirer of the Germany goalkeeper, who has announced that he will not extend his Schalke contract when it expires in 2012.
An 83rd-minute header from Javier Hernandez earned United a 1-0 win at home to Everton on Saturday that preserved its six-point lead at the top of the Premier League.
Coach Ralf Rangnick shuffled his pack in a bid to keep key players fresh and he is expected to restore midfielders Jose Jurado, Kyriakos Papadopoulos and Alexander Baumjohann to the starting XI.
Centre-back Benedikt Howedes, who crashed home the winner in the 2-1 second-leg defeat of Inter, is also set to return from injury.
“I selected the team in such a way because I wanted to win both of our games (against Kaiserslautern and United),” said Rangnick, who took over from Felix Magath last month.
“In the Champions League, we will select a different starting 11 again.”
United also made wholesale changes against Everton and captain Nemanja Vidic will return to the heart of the defence after being rested for the Merseysiders' visit.
Right-back Rafael could start after returning to the squad following a hamstring injury sustained in the first leg of the 3-1 aggregate quarterfinal win over Chelsea,
However, striker Dimitar Berbatov (groin) is doubtful.
