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Mourinho to act as Ferguson's secret weapon

Sir Alex Ferguson plans to use Darren Fletcher to stop Barcelona dominating possession at Wembley © Getty Images

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Sir Alex Ferguson has confirmed he will lean on Jose Mourinho for a helping hand on how to shackle Barcelona in the Champions League final.

Ferguson guided his team to a third European Cup final in four years with a 6-1 aggregate victory over Schalke on Wednesday. But now he must beat the side that he failed to overcome in the 2009 final, when his squad boasted the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez - now departed from the club.

Back then goals from Samuel Eto'o and Lionel Messi separated the two sides, but Ferguson has a close ally in Mourinho, who has just faced Barcelona four times in 18 days. Significantly, Mourinho won the one-off cup final meeting in the Copa del Rey, and the United boss confirmed he will see what information the Real Madrid coach can offer.

"I speak to him quite a lot," said Ferguson. "I have watched them (Barcelona) many times this season but we will take the information because Jose is very helpful that way.

"They haven't got a terror against us. We cannot be frightened out of our skin. We have got to find a solution to playing against them."

Key to that solution is likely to be Darren Fletcher, who was suspended for the 2009 final. The Scotland international returned to action for the first time since March 6 at Old Trafford, and it is widely expected that he will be charged with stopping Barcelona's midfield artistry.

"It wouldn't have been fair to pitch Darren in from the start because he really does need games," said Ferguson. "But he is catching up all the time and we may get him on the bench against Chelsea on Sunday with a view to getting more game time.

"Some players are big-game players and he is one. The perfect example is Mark Hughes, he was one of the best big-game players in United's history. He never failed in a big game and Darren is the same type of player."

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