Old foe fit for Villarreal

Villarreal are likely to have a former domestic rival in their ranks when European football returns to Old Trafford on Wednesday night.

Former Arsenal winger Robert Pires is preparing to face United again after proving his fitness in Villarreal's weekend victory over Deportivo La Coruna. The 34 year-old winger played the final 23 minutes as a substitute in a league match settled by Santi Cazorla Rodriguez's first-half strike.

The 1-0 win means Villarreal have made a better start to the Spanish league season than Barcelona and Real Madrid. But while Pires' team have four points from two games, he's in no doubt that Villarreal are very much the underdogs in Manchester.

"The game on Wednesday against United is a different story altogether to the Depor match," said Pires, as quoted on fifa.com.

"We are facing one of the best teams in Europe and it will be a very intense match.

"It can be difficult to maintain such a high level of concentration and we will have to play at the top of our game."

Pires lost four of his five matches for Arsenal at Old Trafford, including a painful 6-1 thrashing on his first visit with the Gunners in 2001.