Soccer: Manchester United goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar enjoyed a "perfect" Champions League semi-final second-leg victory over Schalke at Old Trafford tonight.

United won 4-1 on the night and 6-1 on aggregate to secure a Wembley final showdown with Barcelona as Antonio Valencia, Darron Gibson and Anderson (2) all scored.

That was despite Alex Ferguson fielding a much-changed team in order to keep players fresh for Sunday’s Premier League blockbuster against Chelsea.

And Van der Sar, who will retire this summer, told ITV1: “It was perfect, after the first leg we were quite well set up to be able to make changes and keep the majority of players fresh for the big game on Sunday.

“We saw how emotional Barcelona were yesterday and maybe our reaction was a bit more subdued but Barca’s was because they have a big rivalry (against Real Madrid).

“Barcelona play exceptionally good football and of course it’s going to be difficult, they showed that in the final in 2009. We have to show we learned the lesson from that one and be better prepared.”

Ferguson admitted he had some doubts about his team selection.

"They did me proud," he told ITV1. "It was a semi-final and the fact it's such an important game does create a bit of doubt in your mind of 'Am I doing the right thing?' but I'm glad we were vindicated.

“It’s fantastic for the club. We’re where we want to be. I’ve said many times we should have done better in Europe over the years and I think this team can win the cup.”