Manchester United’s Amos Hoping For Carling Cup Chance

Twenty-year-old Ben Amos is hoping for another chance between the sticks as Manchester United take on West Ham at Upton Park on Tuesday. The Cheshire-born stopper made his first appearance of the season – and his second for United in competitive games – when he played in goal for the Red Devils in their 3-2 win over Wolves in the Carling Cup fourth round last month. Amos spent some time on loan at Molde in the Norwegian League over the summer, making eight appearances, and United boss Sir Alex Ferguson declared at the start of the season that he would be the side’s third-choice keeper after Edwin van der Sar and Tomas Kuszczak. But while he admits that he looks on enviously at players younger than him playing more regularly in the first-team he says he realises that he needs to be patient.

“The next game is always a target for me,” he told the club’s official website. “They don’t come round too often being the number three keeper, so I’ve just got to make sure I’m ready and I’m peaking when those games come around.

“The patience helps when you know goalkeepers have a longer career; look at Edwin and how he’s still playing now.”Amos admits that training with someone much older than himself like the 40-year-old van der Sar was rather like training with your father although he admits the Dutchman is always keen to pass on advice.

“I’ve said a few times that it is a little bit like training with your dad, yeah. I don’t think he’ll appreciate that, but he’s great. I’m chewing at his ear all the time, trying to get bits of advice. He’s very open and he says what he thinks, so it’s great.

“He’s a good role model because of his presence.”Amos is hoping to make an appearance in tonight’s game at Upton Park but says he isn’t phased by the prospect of playing away in a hostile atmosphere. “Any game in the first team is a game in the first team, so that’s how I approach it. Whether it’s Old Trafford or not, it’s not really an issue. The atmosphere is something you’ve got to handle. I can’t see it being a problem to me personally at all.”

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Brighton 1 FC United of Manchester 1: match report

Sir Alex Ferguson once described FC United of Manchester as publicity seekers but Brighton discovered they are an outfit of some substance. The non-league club produced a display of bloody-minded resistance to rival that shown by many of their kind during the collective mortification at the Glazer family’s takeover of Manchester United.

Long after they had secured a replay and a place in the FA Cup third round, the 854 travelling supports bobbed up and down at one end of the Withdean Stadium chanting “are you watching David Gill?” There is no greater tribute of the endeavors of a side pitted against supposed superiors when they provide the illusion that supporters are watching a league encounter rather than a cup tie.

In the first half FC United chased and harried Brighton, whose season has been marked by controlled football which has seen them establish leadership of League One. Success has whetted their supporters’ appetites for more and by the finish they booed their players off the turf, much to the displeasure of their manager.

“I’m very disappointed with the fans,” Gus Poyet said. “Anyone who boos, I invite them to stay home. Proper supporters support the team every minute of the season.”Criticism should be reserved for Brighton since they controlled proceedings but suffered from over-elaboration. Attacks were purposeful but a lack of incisiveness was crippling.

Frustration gripped them but the source of their exasperation was FC United goalkeeper, Sam Ashton. He was rejected by Bolton Wanderers and splits his time as a care worker with coaching in the community, but produced a display worthy of an accomplished stopper. In stoppage time, with Brighton pummeling the box, Karl Munroe pole-axed Francisco Sandaza and Ashton plunged to his right to repel Elliott Bennett’s penalty.

That save sparked gasps but that was not an isolated moment of heroism. In the opening period he kept out Ashley Barnes’ point-blank header. “Sam left Bolton and went from £60,000 a year to £60 a week,” FC United general manager Andy Walsh said. “He coaches in our community but he could play in the Football League.”

For a while FC United made a mockery of the 112 places that separate these clubs. Forward Michael Norton, a tiler by trade who earns £80 a week, pressurised Brighton’s backline. Carlos Roca, a debt adviser, embarrassed footballers on far higher salaries with trickery and pace. Brighton fell behind courtesy of a precise finish from green-keeper Nicky Platt. Norton controlled Roca’s pass and found Platt whose shot whistled in.

Brighton pressed in the second half and Munroe cleared off the line from Sandaza, yet the hosts were aided by Scott McManus’ sending off for clashing with Gary Hart. It took 37-year-old assistant manager Mauricio Taricco’s header to salvage the tie but not deflate wholehearted opponents.

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Manchester United v Blackburn Rovers

If Manchester United avoid defeat they will equal their previous best ever unbeaten start to a season, set in the 1985-86 campaign. On that occasion they won 13 and drew two of their opening 15 games in the old First Division, but their form fell away and they went on to finish fourth. Of their 14 unbeaten games this season United have won seven and drawn seven. But at Old Trafford, they have won six and drawn one and last lost at home in April, against Chelsea.

United are at their best in the first-half of games. Of the 15 goals they have conceded, 13 have come in the second half, representing 87 per cent. In the first-half, they have also scored more second-half goals, 15, compared to the 13 in the first half. United need four goals for 100 at home in league football against Blackburn, in the 48th meeting at Old Trafford.

United can go top for the first time since April 24 and they face a side against who they have taken 39 points from a possible 48 at home in the Premier League. In those 16 games, United have won 12 and drawn three with the only defeat coming in September 2005. And in all competitions, home and away, United are unbeaten in their last nine games against Rovers, since the 3-4 Premier League defeat at Ewood Park in February 2006.

Wayne Rooney could return to league action following Wednesday’s 1-0 win at Rangers where he scored the late winning penalty. Blackburn are likely to be without Brett Emerton again while Martin Olsson, Steven Nzonzi, Vince Grella and Keith Andrews are also out.

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This goal is just the start, says Manchester United's Wayne Rooney

Sir Alex Ferguson insisted there were no lingering issues about Wayne Rooney's popularity with Manchester United's supporters after the striker marked his first start for two months with the goal that sent his club into the Champions League knockout stages.

Rooney's 87th-minute penalty was the decisive moment of a 1-0 win that relegates Rangers into the Europa League and Ferguson believes the forward can now move on from the various controversies that led to a minority of fans booing him when he came on a substitute against Wigan Athletic on Saturday.

"There are no issues with that [the fans] at all," the United manager said. "Every time he scores he weds himself to the fans and the players and it's taken a lot of courage to take that penalty kick. I don't think he's ever been short of that – and it was a fantastic penalty. "He's not had an easy night, he's missed a couple of chances but that's what we expected. He's rusty, he needs games; that's obvious, but it's a start for him. We need him to keep playing 90 minutes and that will continue now."

Rooney had insisted before the match that his contract dispute with the club was "100% not about money" and afterwards he said he was relieved to be talking about football again.

"I had to wait quite a long time to take it [the penalty] but I knew what I was doing and where I was going with it," he said. "It didn't bother me too much. There weren't any nerves but it was a relief for me to score and hopefully now I can build on this. I felt good through the game. I felt fit and I want to go on a goalscoring run now."

Rooney added: "I wanted to celebrate with our fans so I went over to them and a fan jumped on me. It was a nice feeling. It was quite a frustrating night until then and we were thankful to get the win in the end. It was a job well done. They [Rangers] got a lot of men behind the ball and made it difficult for us and it was hard to break them down."

United have not conceded a goal in their five Champions League matches and though they are still not absolutely certain to win Group C – they must avoid a two-goal defeat on 7 December at home to Valencia, who last night beat Bursaspor 6-1 in Spain – Ferguson could reflect on a handsome run of nine wins from their last 10 away games.

"Our away form in Europe has been very good over the last few years," he said. "But for an injury-time winner for Bayern Munich [in March] we would have been unbeaten for three years. We've found a way of playing against foreign teams and with good composure. "The atmosphere at Ibrox … you have to quieten it, and I think we did that well and deserved to win.

"They [Rangers] were organised and disciplined and very difficult to break down but we had a high amount of possession, three or four half-chances and one very good chance when Michael Carrick went through on goal. That's the thing I will take from the game – the way we kept possession and controlled the game."

Walter Smith, the Rangers manager, argued that the penalty was unjust, the Swiss referee Massimo Busacca ruling that Steven Naismith had illegally challenged Fábio da Silva. "We worked extremely hard and we're disappointed to lose to that kind of goal," Smith said. "I don't think there was any intent from Steven to foul the player so it was maybe a harsh award. If they had carved us open, we wouldn't be happy, but at least you can accept that."

Ferguson, however, was adamant it was the right decision, saying: "It was an assault, a clear penalty." He was angered, too, that United had not been awarded one inside the opening two minutes, when Steven Davis brought down Dimitar Berbatov. "It was another clear penalty, six yards away from the assistant referee on the goalline."

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Rangers v Manchester United: Dimitar Berbatov's lack of goals is my fault, says Sir Alex Ferguson

United’s £30.75 million record buy hasn’t scored since a hat-trick against Liverpool in September, and he was dropped for last Saturday’s Premier League match against Wigan. However, Berbatov is likely to start up front with Rooney against Rangers at Ibrox tonight, and Ferguson told the Manchester Evening News: "In fairness to Dimitar’s situation we have been changing the strikers quite a lot recently. I think I have to accept the responsibility for changing it too much. "Now we are going to have to be looking at getting consistency of performance.

"We have a lot of good young striker options who have played in a lot of games recently, but hopefully we can get Wayne back to his best and Dimitar is suited to playing with Wayne."Ferguson wants Rooney to treat his return to the United starting line-up tonight in the Champions League just like his first game of the season.

Aside from a couple of decent performances for England, Rooney endured a tepid start to the campaign, failing to score a goal in open play in a period that included some lurid allegations about his private life. Then came the mad week when it appeared the 25 year-old was intent on leaving Old Trafford before eventually signing a five-year deal, having been cut down by an ankle injury in the middle of all the furore.

Now, after a brief break in Dubai, another week's intensive conditioning work in Oregon and some time spent working at the Carrington training ground, Rooney is ready to face Rangers and show the world all his talent still remains. "Absolutely," agreed Ferguson, when asked if Rooney should regard it as a fresh start. "There is no question about that. "His fitness is good and maybe it will take two or three games but they will help to get him back as quick as we can. "But this is a high profile match, on a terrific pitch, in a great stadium with a terrific atmosphere. All the signs are plus ones, particularly for a player of Wayne's ability."

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Rangers - Manchester United Preview: Wayne Rooney starts as Red Devils aim to seal Champions League qualification

A hamstring injury rules Madjid Bougherra out of the tie, with the centre-back set to miss the next three weeks, and he joins Maurice Edu, who is suffering from a knee problem, James Beattie and Andy Webster on the sidelines.

However, there is some good news as Sasa Papac could return, despite missing Rangers’ last two games against Aberdeen and Kilmarnock with a head injury. Sir Alex Ferguson has insisted Wayne Rooney will start for the visitors and he may be joined by Ryan Giggs who has recovered from a hamstring problem and is expected to be named in the squad.

Rafael remains a doubt at right-back for the visitors and Paul Scholes could also feature having begun the win against Wigan on the bench. However, expect changes from the weekend, although not perhaps the 10 United made the last time they faced Rangers.

On the brink

Rangers welcome Manchester United to Ibrox currently sitting in third place in Group C and knowing that two wins from their final two games are imperative if they are to have any chance of making the knockout stages.

Whilst the final game for the Scots is away at the group’s whipping boys Bursapor, that match will be rendered all but meaningless should they fall to defeat to Sir Alex Ferguson’s charges.

Yet Rangers will take on the Premier League outfit with confidence having held them, comfortably it must be said, to a goalless draw at Old Trafford back in September.

The Scottish champions are also unbeaten at home in the Champions League this season, Bursaspor were despatched 1-0 and Valencia were held to a 1-1 draw.

Whilst the point against the Spaniards appeared a good result, the Scots will surely rue that draw now as had it not been for a Maurice Edu own goal and some profligate finishing from Kenny Miller, the Gers would have secured a vital win and with it a real chance of making the knockout stages.

Out to make a point

The visitors, meanwhile, sit top of the group with 10 points and only need a draw to confirm their progression having beaten Bursaspor home and away and Valencia at the Mestalla following their opening draw to Rangers.

Sir Alex Ferguson opted to field virtually a reserve side for the reverse fixture but may look for a more experienced line-up and will hope for a better outcome from the game at Old Trafford that was notable not for the drab football on show, but for the horrific injury suffered by Antonio Valencia.

While the Red Devils have rarely hit the heights this season, they are still unbeaten, and with eight wins from their last nine away games in the Champions League, will be favourites to depart Glasgow with their progression to the next round safely ensured.

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Liverpool, Manchester City and Manchester United

Liverpool’s centre half, Martin Skrtel, had been forced to withdraw from Slovakia's team due to injury. The centre-back has been struggling with knee and ankle problems since his club's 2-0 defeat at Stoke on Saturday, when he had to take pain-killers to complete the match. Skrtel had therefore decided not to play in the international friendly and informed Slovakia coach Vladimir Weiss that he was better off staying in England. The 25-year-old will now aim to regain full fitness for Liverpool's crucial match against West Ham at Anfield on Saturday.

Martin Skrtel said: "I've had problems with my knee and ankle (since the Stoke game). Before half-time, one of the opposing players kicked me in the knee from behind and I had to finish the game under pain-killers. Besides that, I also twisted my ankle, which has been haunting me since a friendly game against Costa Rica in June."

Liverpool will welcome London side, West Ham United, at Anfield for the 14th game of their Barclays Premier League campaign. Liverpool top the bottom half of the Premier League table and will be looking to move into the top half of the table with a win.

Manchester City:

The Citizens assistant manager David Platt has launched a spirited defence of his boss, Roberto Mancini. The Manchester City manager has come under fire for being taking too defensive an approach after successive goalless draws. The Manchester City faithful reacted by chanting "What is going on" when their manager opted to replace a striker with defensive midfielders towards the end of City’s latest stalemate against Birmingham. It seemed a pointless move, given an attacker was also present on the bench at that moment.

However, Platt was quick to reject any notion of Mancini being a defensive coach.

Platt said that it was wrong for people to judge the coach by saying he was defensive. He added, "He isn't (defensive), in any way, shape or form. It is too easy to look at it and say you have taken a striker off and put a midfield player on. It isn't a computer game. We more or less camped out in the Birmingham half for the majority of the second half. "

Despite Manchester City’s two consecutive draws, the Citizens are well placed in fourth spot in Premier League table, just three points behind their fierce-rivals Manchester United.

Manchester United:

Preston North End has agreed a deal with Manchester United for the loan signing of defender Ritchie de Laet. Ritchie de Laet joins two fellow United players at the Lancashire club. Manager Darren Ferguson moved swiftly to secure his services, after Sean St Ledger and Callum Davidson both picked up knocks against Hull City last Friday. The length of the deal is yet to be agreed between the clubs but the versatile defender will be included in the squad for Saturday's trip to Queens Park Rangers.

Darren said: "We've agreed a deal with United for Ritchie de Laet - it's been sanctioned by them. We've just got to finalise the length of the loan then everything will be done. He's joining us for training and will be available for the QPR game. Ritchie is a versatile defender; he spent a month on loan with Sheffield United recently so he knows the Championship."

Manchester United signed De Laet from Stoke City in January 2009, and has made three Premier League starts for the Red Devils.

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Aston Villa learn a tough lesson as Manchester United show their never-say-die spirit

This was Manchester United’s seventh Premier League draw of the season and might have offered more ammunition to those who claim the title is Chelsea’s for the taking, but this match demonstrated exactly why it isn’t. Even at two goals down and with 14 minutes to play, United believed they could salvage something. For the young Aston Villa players this refusal to accept defeat was a lesson worth learning and, as their manager, Gérard Houllier, said afterwards, United “showed qualities that should inspire us in the future”.

Barry Bannan, 20, one of the young stars of the show, agreed that there was much he could take from the experience of competing against midfielders like Darren Fletcher and Michael Carrick. “You see how comfortable their two central midfield players are on the ball and how much space they have,” he said. “You are learning and you try and take it into the next game.

The most important lesson he and his Villa team-mates – and indeed anyone ruling out United as title contenders this season – must take from the result, however, is about a special attribute which cannot be taught or learned any other way but through consistently experiencing victory: the eradication of self-doubt.

United beat Wolves last weekend with a goal in the 90th minute and had beaten Mick McCarthy’s side in the Carling Cup in October with another last-minute strike. Javier Hernández scored in the 86th minute against Stoke and Dimitar Berbatov rounded off his hat-trick against Liverpool in the 84th minute.

“It is part of the club’s history,” said Fletcher, who turned the ignition switch by rolling the ball to Federico Macheda to score with nine minutes left.

“It is the mentality of the manager and the players that you are never beaten until the last kick of the ball. We honestly believe if we keep going in the right way until the last minute we will be rewarded. When a manager has a history of doing it, you fall into it. No one gives in at this club. We go on to the end. It’s the United way.”

That might well be the case, but it is worth remembering that were it not for the width of the woodwork, United’s psychological strength would have been made redundant.

James Collins and Gabriel Agbonlahor hit the crossbar and a post respectively in the space of two minutes before Ashley Young outpaced Nemanja Vidic before being bundled to the ground in the area by Wes Brown and Mike Dean awarded the penalty.

Young picked himself up to score from the spot to put his side ahead. Four minutes later, Marc Albrighton’s finish to a stock-in-trade counter-attack started by Bannan, with Young and Stewart Downing the conduits, seemed to have settled the issue.

But Villa should have known all about United’s propensity to launch the proverbial kitchen sink in the final minutes. Evidently their young players did not know or had forgotten.

''It’s almost expected that United score in the final five minutes,” Fletcher said. “That plays a part — when other teams see the [stoppage time] board going up, they know that we are still going to go for it.”

And this match was no different. With their lead reduced to one by a sharp strike from Macheda, who was responsible for snatching United their 3-2 win at Old Trafford two seasons ago, Villa could still have closed out the game. But rather than calmly shutting the door in United’s face by retaining possession and running down time, they tried to match them for aggression.

They were duly punished as, with only five minutes left, Nani curled the ball in with his left foot to the far post and United’s captain Nemanja Vidic dived to head the equaliser.

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Manchester City v Manchester United: Carlos Tévez has made Gary Neville eat his words

“He (Sir Alex Ferguson) knows exactly what he’s doing and he understands when a player’s time is up. I can’t disagree with his decision on Carlos Tévez.”Neville’s opinion on the merits of Ferguson’s decision to stand aside as Tévez left Manchester United for Manchester City in July 2009 prompted an ugly slanging match between the Argentine and the former United captain during the two clubs’ tempestuous Carling Cup semi-final double header last January.

Although United overcame a first-leg defeat to proceed to the final, Tévez’s performance over the two legs, when he scored three goals, provided the perfect riposte to Neville’s comments and Ferguson’s refusal to sanction a permanent £25million move for the forward, who had spent two years on loan at Old Trafford.

Tévez may have occupied third-ranking behind Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney during his time in a United shirt, but few could now argue against the suggestion that the City captain has emerged as Manchester’s most important footballer since moving to Eastlands.

City might still desire a superstar name in the mould of Lionel Messi or Ronaldo, but Tévez is arguably as important to Roberto Mancini’s team as Messi is to Barcelona and Ronaldo to Real Madrid.

The 26 year-old’s relationship with his manager at City is fractious and tension is rarely far from the surface, but whether they like each other or not, Tévez is undoubtedly delivering for Mancini. Since he replaced the sacked Mark Hughes as manager last December, Mancini has seen Tévez score 31 goals in his 45 games in charge.

Tévez has gone from bit-part player at United to the central figure at City, to the extent that his team-mates now concede that there is an huge reliance on the former West Ham forward.

City goalkeeper Joe Hart said: “Sir Alex Ferguson is one of the greatest managers that has ever lived, so if he decided that Carlos wasn’t right for his club, then that’s how it is. “But Carlos is a phenomenal player, the best I have played with. He can carry a team and he can carry 10 men.”With Tévez having returned to Argentina last week to visit his family and recover from a thigh injury, City lost to Wolves and Lech Poznan in his absence.

On his return against West Bromwich Albion on Sunday, Tévez’s presence coincided with Mancini’s team securing a vital 2-0 victory. Despite the money spent on new players by City – more than £250million since May 2009 – their dependence on Tévez is striking.

With Tévez in the team, City have a win rate of 51 per cent in the Premier League. Yet without him, Mancini’s players have won just 25 per cent of their league fixtures. The win rate is an unimpressive 29 per cent when Tévez has come on as a substitute.

Tévez is rarely rested by Mancini, but that is unsurprising given that his strike rate sees him score roughly every one-and-a-half games. Last season, Tévez scored a Premier League goal every 124.7 minutes, while this term he is hitting the back of the net every 120.1 minutes.

His success rate in Manchester derbies is a black mark on his record, though. In five league derbies, for both United and City, he has lost four times and won just once – when he scored in United’s 2-0 victory at Old Trafford in May 2009.

On that occasion, he celebrated his goal by running to the touchline and directing a defiant ear-cupping gesture to United chief executive David Gill in the directors’ box. It symbolised the breakdown of his relationship with United and signalled his intention to move to City. As Neville said, his time was up at United, but their loss has been City’s gain.

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Sir Alex Ferguson believes Manchester City will continue to splash the cash in the transfer market until they secure some silverware

The Eastlands outfit have invested vast sums in an attempt to bring success ever since Sheikh Mansour completed his takeover of the club in the summer of 2008. And while their star-studded squad is the envy of many in the Premier League, both Mark Hughes and Roberto Mancini have, as yet, been unable to secure any tangible reward despite the massive outlay.

The last piece of major silverware lifted by the blue half of Manchester was the 1976 League Cup, a fact which United supporters take great delight in reminding their rivals of, particularly with one famous banner at Old Trafford. United make the trip across Manchester to Eastlands on Wednesday evening trailing Premier League leaders Chelsea by two points after an unconvincing but unbeaten season, with Mancini's men three further back having snapped a two-game losing run.
Edge

And while Ferguson believes having their neighbours in the title race adds greater spice to an already fiery fixture, he feels that the thirst for success may add to the pressure on City's shoulders. "[City's good start this season] does put an edge on [the game]," the Reds boss told Inside United. "I don't believe there's any question about that.

"We know the kind of money they're spending - they've bought another five or six players in the summer - and they'll keep doing that until they win something. "You know that's going to be the way it is and you have to deal with it as it comes along. "They're up there [challenging for the title], and you can't wait until tomorrow when there's something there today. I'm sure they're thinking that way themselves."

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Michael Carrick: We shouldn't 'get ahead of ourselves' in light of Manchester City's poor form

Michael Carrick believes that Manchester United will not start to think about the upcoming derby game against Manchester City, as they still have to take on Wolves before the battle against their neighbours.

The Eastlands club have lost three consecutive games in all competitions, the last of which was against Polish side Lech Poznan in the Europa League. The recent defeats have also sparked speculation that their manager Roberto Mancini could be heading for the exit door, amid reports of dressing room unrest.

But the 29-year-old insists that his side will remain focussed on the task at hand against Wolves, as they were one of the three teams that recently got the better of City - who still are in fourth position in the Premier League.

"We know the bigger picture," Carrick told reporters. "When things are going well we don't get carried away and when things aren't going so well we don't get despondent either because we know things will turn.

"We are on a good run at the moment. We are happy with the way things are going and are now bouncing into games. "The derby is there, but in another way, it still seems a long way off.

"We cannot afford to get ahead of ourselves because we have Wolves to play on Saturday and they beat City last week so that is going to be tough enough."Concerning the "bigger picture" that the former West Ham United man spoke of, United are currently five points behind league leaders Chelsea.

And a part of the lead could arguably be attributed to the Red Devils' early season blues as they surrendered leads and fell to draws with Fulham, Everton and West Bromwich Albion. However, despite drawing more games than any of the top eight in the Premier League, they are still in third place and are the only team not to have lost a league game this season.

"We are still frustrated about all those silly points we gave away but we are unbeaten and that gives us a lot of confidence," said Carrick. "It gives us confidence to know we are tough to beat again. "We have always been able to score goals. Now is the time to start getting the results we want."

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Napoli midfielder Marek Hamsik 'pleased' to be on Manchester United's watch list

Napoli midfielder Marek Hamsik insists that he is delighted to be on Manchester United's watch list, ahead of the Europa League encounter against Liverpool. The 23-year-old is thought to have attracted interest from the Red Devils, and previously maintained that it would be hard to refuse if Sir Alex Ferguson came calling for his services.

And with The Mirror reporting that United scouts will watch the attacking midfielder in action at Anfield on Thursday, he said: "I am pleased people want to see me. "I want to perform well on this stage against a team like Liverpool at Anfield. "I know the English league is a great league with a wonderful atmosphere and great stadia. "There are rumours but no-one has contacted me or the club. "I am calm and relaxed and just want to play well for Napoli."

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Ferguson hails new United captain Vidic

Sir Alex Ferguson is certain he got it right by naming Nemanja Vidic as Manchester United's new captain. The decision was a surprise to many but as alternative choices Gary Neville, Ryan Giggs and Rio Ferdinand all missed the trip to Turkey for Tuesday night's Champions League encounter with Bursaspor, it appears Ferguson made the correct decision to go with Vidic, who is already proving to be a sturdy leader.

"We had to choose someone we felt was going to be fit and playing every week," said Ferguson. "That is difficult when you rotate the squad the way we do. We felt Vidic was closest to that. And he is a defender and I always think they make better captains.

Vidic will lead his side into battle on Tuesday evening knowing victory against a team that has failed to register a single point in their three outings so far - and were beaten by Nani's early strike at Old Trafford a fortnight ago - will take them within touching distance of a spot in the last 16. As Chelsea and Arsenal are in equally comfortable positions, it has been used as evidence of the Champions League reducing in quality. Ferguson is having none of it.

"Have you seen the last six World Cups? It is better going to the dentist I suppose," he said. "It is a natural thing. If you look at the great teams in the European Cup now and think of the Premier League, you are not going to get the same crowd for Arsenal playing a lower team in the league, or the same tension and drama as you would Arsenal against Manchester United. "It is the same in the Champions League. Inter Milan playing one of the smaller teams will not get the same crowd. "The important thing is the Champions League has proved itself since its inception. It is better than the World Cup. It is unbelievable. There are some fantastic games. "Yes, you have to get through the group stages before you get to the really exciting stage but it is a fantastic tournament."

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