Edwin van der Sar hoping to make it lucky No 13 for United

26 April 2011 08:19
Edwin van der Sar is set to become a Champions League record-breaker when Manchester United take on Schalke on Tuesday night.[LNB]The 40-year-old will join former Chelsea midfielder Claude Makelele by making his 13th semi-final appearance when United take on the Bundesliga side in Gelsenkirchen.[LNB]Van der Sar made six of his appearances during his youthful days at Ajax, while he had to wait until his latter years to enjoy such achievements again.[LNB] No 13: Edwin van der Sar celebrates after United beat Chelsea and seal their place in the semi-finals last month[LNB]However, having confirmed his retirement plans for the summer, Van der Sar knows the Champions League final at Wembley on May 28 could represent the most fitting send-off imaginable.[LNB]Van der Sar has twice won the competition before - once with Ajax in 2005 and United in 2008 - and the Dutchman said: 'It is always nice when you are involved in a winning team. We have been good recently, so hopefully we can carry that on. I have had a reasonable career so far. Let's hope I can finish it off nicely.'[LNB]Van der Sar has so far resisted the temptation to reverse his decision to retire despite repeated attempts from inside United's dressing room.[LNB]When he is still capable of pulling off the type of fingertip stop that denied Everton's Jack Rodwell at the weekend, it is easy to see why so many observers feel he could carry on. But Van der Sar is wary about losing his powers overnight and has no wish to put his theory to the test. [LNB] At full stretch: Van der Sar prepares for the clash against Schalke with a training session in Gelsenkirchen [LNB]Instead, he was happy to express his admiration for another veteran, and the most obvious threat to United reaching their fifth European Cup final, Raul, a comparative stripling at 33.[LNB]'Raul is quite an amazing player,' said Van der Sar. 'He had so many years at Real Madrid at a high level and scored so many goals for them in the league. In addition, he is top scorer in the Champions League.[LNB]'He is not someone you can lose your eyesight of. He is so dangerous and only needs a little chance to score a goal. Our defenders should be on their toes when they play against him.'[LNB] Berbatov out! Blow for United as striker misses Schalke clash with groin injury Manchester City fans taint Blackburn win with chanting about Munich air disaster MANCHESTER UNITED FC

Source: Daily_Mail