An article by Ouriel Daskal from soccerissue.com  you can find all his articles here.

“It is not the strongest or the most intelligent who will survive but those who can best manage change” Charles Darwin, The father of evolution.

Sir Alex Ferguson first met a Jose Mourinho team on 25 of February 2004. It ended with him losing the match and then losing the tie in Old Trafford. It was the beginning of a new era in football. The Mourinho era.

Coaching stepped up a level since then. Mourinho introduced a new level of preparing, motivating and training. Fergie had to change and he did that unlike coaches who stayed stubborn to their principles and ideology.

However, United’s record against teams managed by Mourinho is not brilliant. United have won 3 of 14 games against Mourinho’s Porto, Chelsea or Inter and lost six. When United did beat a Mourinho team, it was because Ferguson’s ability to create a super talented spearhead – Ronaldo-Rooney. They grew from the need to fight against the new and very sophisticated predator who was Mourinho. It was a great example of an evolution process.

Can the Robin van Persie-Rooney pairing be the new “tie-breaking” weapon in Ferguson’s arsenal? Are they a result of an evolution process or a just a pale Rooney-CR7 imitation, which grew in a Mourinholess environment?

That’s the big question ahead of the Real Madrid – Manchester United fixture.

BY Ouriel Daskal  FOLLOW HIM ON TWITTER: @SOCCERISSUE