It's the big one - the game every Colchester United fan has been waiting for all season has finally arrived.

And U's manager Mick Wadsworth believes he has the perfect match-winner in Brazilian ace Jose Antunes Fumaca who he predicts will "set the place alight" on his debut.

Mighty Manchester City are in town tomorrow night for a vital Sky Box Office live TV Division Two clash - kick-off 6pm - that has long been a 7,000 all-ticket sell-out.

After surprisingly coming unstuck at bottom-of-the-table Macclesfield last week, U's boss Mick Wadsworth and his eager Layer Road squad just can't wait to get stuck into them.

"It's exciting for everyone," said Wadsworth. "These are the kind of games the people of Colchester could only dream about years ago.

"It's not too long ago that City were winning everything in sight including the European Cup Winners' Cup and Colchester were slipping out of the League into the Conference.

"Yet here we are playing a very important Division Two match - a massive game for both clubs for differing reasons."

Joe Royle's Maine Road men need to win to keep pace with the promotion race, while Colchester - just five points ahead of a relegation threat - need to get back on the winning track to give themselves more breathing space.

City had already won one League championship, five second division titles and the FA Cup twice before the U's were invited to enter the Football League.

But Wadsworth promises there will be no inferiority complexes among his players come kick-off time.

He said: "The lads are up for this one and we are all looking for a big improvement after losing at Macclesfield last week.

"The Brazilian should make a big difference to us - he is something else, a cracking player and I think we'll be very lucky to hang on to him!"

Colchester will be working twice as hard to avoid being doubled by a City side who beat them 2-1 at Maine Road earlier in the season. And Wadsworth doesn't believe the U's cramped Layer Road ground will make a scrap of difference to them.

"City have been travelling to tight grounds all season. Ours won't be any different."

The U's boss does have one or two problems however. Skipper Richard Wilkins and Charlton loanee Bradley Allen are definitely ruled out, while Warren Aspinall and Joe Dunne are rated as very doubtful.

Central defender David Greene will be back after completing his three-match suspension.

Converted for the new archive on 19 November 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.