Sir Alex Ferguson has admitted Chelsea have shown him the way to beat Barcelona in the Champions League Final.

The Manchester United manager is confident his side will prove too strong for the Spaniards, who scraped past Chelsea in the semifinal on away goals.

Barcelona have scored the most goals in the competition this season but it took Andres Iniesta's injury-time strike at Stamford Bridge to go through.

Ferguson said: "Chelsea showed they can be beaten and I took some encouragement from that. We hope we can express ourselves the way we want to in the final because that's important if you are to win the tournament. We have the players who can do that."

Ferguson is unsure if Rio Ferdinand will be fit enough for the final a week today having missed the last three weeks with a calf injury.

The centre-half is set to return to training tomorrow and Ferguson admits he needs to play against Hull on Sunday to be in contention for Rome.

He added: "I am hoping he will be fit for Sunday because if not, he is doubtful for Wednesday. Being in a Champions League Final without playing for three weeks will be too much."

Ferguson is also looking forward to playing the final in Rome despite warnings from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office about safety measures.

He said: "It is a fantastic city. We have some good memories of playing there.

"I am sure it won't rain like it did in Moscow for our final last year."

Despite Ferguson's confidence there are also bullish comments coming from the Barcelona camp with Lionel Messi claiming the result at Chelsea has inspired them.

The forward said: "We were suffering right up until stoppage time at Stamford Bridge. But that's one more proof that we deserve to win the trophy."