There can be no doubt that the bone-jarring collisions we see on Saturday will be far more substantial than the flick from David Beckham's right boot which led to Diego Simeone collapsing in apparent agony on the same pitch 17 years ago. This mouth-watering repeat of last year's European Cup semi-final in Saint-Etienne's famous Stade Geoffrey-Guichard will be no place for faint-hearted souls like Argentina's 1998 football World Cup captain. Instead, Saracens head coach Mark McCall wants warriors. Twenty-three of them, to be exact, if every player in his squad gets on to the field to face a Clermont Auvergne team that made Aviva Premiership champions Northampton look like a pub side only two weeks ago. Veteran fly half Charlie Hodgson will run the show for Saracens against Clermont on Saturday . England centre Brad Barritt will captain Mark McCall's side against at Stade Geoffroy-Guichard . Owen Farrell has recovered from a knee injury and has been named on the bench for the big clash . CLERMONT AUVERGNE: N Abendanon; N Nakaitaci, J Davies, W Fofana, N Nalaga; B James, L Radosavljevic; V Debaty, B Kayser, D Zirakashvili, J Cudmore, S Vahaamahina, J Bonnaire, D Chouly (capt), J Bardy. SARACENS: A Goode; C Ashton, M Bosch, B Barritt (capt), C Wyles; C Hodgson, R Wigglesworth; M Vunipola, J George, P Du Plessis, G Kruis, J Hamilton, M Itoje, B Vunipola, J Burger. Kick-off: 3.15pm, Stade Geoffroy-Guichard, Saint-Etienne. TV: LIVE on BT Sport 1 from 2.30pm. Referee: George Clancy (Ireland). Jacques Burger, Clermont's nemesis in last year's semi-final, is back after a one-match ban while 20-year-old Maro Itoje will take the other flank in a Saracens pack that must match Clermont's monstrous eight for physicality. 'Experience tells us that in games as big and as difficult as this you need your warriors,' McCall said this week. Saracens' experience also tells them Clermont can be beaten. This time last year the sides met at the same stage and produced what many believed to be a seminal performance in Sarries' history as Vern Cotter's men were crushed 46-6 at Twickenham. There were warriors aplenty for the men in black that day as Saracens powered into their first European Cup final only to fall short against a Jonny Wilkinson-inspired Toulon in the final . Maro Itoje has been named to start at blindside flanker following a string of impressive performances . On Saturday, a similarly Herculean effort will be required against a Clermont side who have almost forgotten how to lose at their own Stade Marcel-Michelin. Stade Geoffrey-Guichard, however, is not home territory for either club, though Saracens travel as underdogs. 'Playing away from home has always galvanised us,' said Saracens battle-hardened centre Brad Barritt — captain in the absence of Alistair Hargreaves. 'Early in this team's evolution we spoke about going to these arenas where Saracens had never won and knocking over another hurdle. This is another chance to make an everlasting memory and take a massive scalp. It's something that brings the best out of this team.' Clermont have an array of attacking talent that can hurt Saracens with Wesley Fofana to the fore . Few teams know each other better, with last year's semi-final still fresh in the memory as well as two pool games this season which saw honours shared. This week McCall invited Jim McGuinness, the former Donegal gaelic football manager and current Celtic psychologist, to address the squad before training. McCall said: 'When Jim took over in 2010 Donegal hadn't won a game for three seasons and hadn't won a championship in 19. 'He took them on a journey over four seasons where they won the all-Ireland in year two and have been Ulster champions in three out of the four years he coached them. It seemed like a very similar journey to our own. Our players were captivated.' Jacques Burger (centre) was a standout performer in Saracens' 46-6 victory at Twickenham last season . Saracens are able to call on linchpin No 8 Billy Vunipola, who starts in a back row alongside Burger and Itoje who, standing 6ft 5in and weighing 18st 2lb, epitomises the modern-day rugby player. Vunipola was cleared on Tuesday of intentionally head-butting Leicester's Mathew Tait in last weekend's Premiership encounter. With veteran fly-half Charlie Hodgson in the form of his life and Owen Farrell on the bench after recovering from the knee injury which kept him out of England's Six Nations campaign, Saracens are close to full strength. Barritt believes experience will be crucial. 'We have a squad who have been there and done it,' he said. 'We have experienced those highs and lows of winning a Premiership, losing in the final of the Premiership and consistently getting to the latter stages of the Europe. Those experiences made us a stronger and better team. McCall (above) invited  ex-Donegal gaelic football manager Jim McGuinness to speak to his side this week . 'We feel like we're in a great position for the final run-in of the season. We've won the last six or seven games. In these big games it's often about adapting to the situation and we know we have got a few strings to our bow.' Against a Clermont side capable of striking from anywhere on the field, Saracens will need all those strings. Billy Vunipola was cleared on Tuesday of intentionally head-butting Leicester full back Mathew Tait .
Saracens face Clermont at Stade Geoffroy-Guichard on Saturday . Sarries defeated Clermont 46-6 in last year's semi-final at Twickenham . Maro Itoje has been named to start at blindside flanker . Clermont crushed Northampton 37-5 in the quarter-finals . Brad Barritt will captain Mark McCall's side against Les Jaunards .