Gamba Osaka coach Akira Nishino was in a defiant mood ahead of their FIFA Club World Cup clash against European champions Manchester United, saying human frailty could prove to be their downfall on Wednesday.
The Asian champions take on Alex Ferguson's star-studded line-up in the semifinals of the inter-continental club tournament on Thursday after struggling to beat Australia's Adelaide United 1-0 in the quarterfinals.
English champions United possess greater strength, skills and experience. But with the players still recovering after a long journey from England, Nishino remains hopeful.
"Ferguson may be Ferguson, but I like to think he's human too," Nishino was quoted by the official website of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) as saying on Wednesday. "The same goes for Manchester United and Gamba. We will face them without fear."
Yasuhito Endo scored Gamba's only goal against Adelaide, who were beaten 5-0 on aggregate by Nishino's men in the AFC Champions League final last month.
The Japanese league side are handicapped by injuries to attacking midfielders Takahiro Futagawa and Hayato Sasaki, who were stretchered off during their win over Adelaide on Sunday.
Ferguson, who has a full squad to choose from, picked out Endo as Gamba's main danger man after watching the match against Adelaide on video.
"He (Endo) is their star player," said Ferguson. "Not only did he score the decisive goal, he was the influential player in terms of possession of the ball."
(Xinhua News Agency December 17, 2008)
