Sir Alex: The Better Team Won

Sir Alex Ferguson was magnanimous in defeat as United slipped to a dramatic 2-1 reverse at West Ham, conceding that the Hammers had been clearly the better side.

After only a third league defeat of the season, however, the United manager admits his side need to embark on a long winning run as the season enters a nitty-gritty stage.

"We didn't play well, particularly in the first half," Sir Alex told MUTV. "They were very aggressive, tackled everywhere and we never got our game going.

"I don't think we deserved to be in front to be honest with you. They were the better team, they had two or three attempts, hit the bar, had a few efforts scrambled away from our penalty area and really we just didn't perform.

"I still couldn't see us losing, but losing two goals from set pieces tells you everything. If you're losing goals at set-pieces then there's something wrong, your performance isn't at the top level. You can't afford to do that."

While at a loss to explain United's below-par display at Upton Park, Sir Alex - who served the first of a two-match touchline ban - is all too aware of the need to avoid such slips going into the second half of the season.

"Sometimes you have to say that, from time to time, human beings are going to have a bad performance," he said. "I can't pick out a player who played well for us today, and that tells the story.

"It's a rare disappointment, we don't usually get as bad a performance as that. I think we need to go on a long run now because you're coming to the crucial part of the season. In many ways the season starts on January 1st.

"The run-in involves the Champions League and FA Cup, it's a congested fixture list and you have to have the squad and you have to have players performing properly."