Boss Focused Amid A Storm

Sir Alex Ferguson wanted more of a cutting edge from his team against Bursaspor but, under the circumstances, a victory was top of the agenda after a tough week at Old Trafford.

It was far from a classic, but the boss was pleased to collect all three points to move two points clear at the top of the Group C. “A win was important, it was important for the fans,” he told MUTV. "The players worked hard and there was good unity among them and a good atmosphere in the dressing room.

"I think we could have pushed on better. That’s why I put on Chicharito to try and get more impetus in the striking part. But I think we did our job well in the sense we kept our intensity and we controlled the whole match. They had one shot with two minutes of the match remaining. So we can take credit for that, the players worked really hard. But we could have done better in the final third.”

Nani had earlier given United the lead after seven minutes with a thunderbolt strike. “He is getting better, that is the great thing,” added the boss “He’s added a good goal ratio to his game. He’s got great feet, and courage, and he’s quick. He loves playing, he loves training. A lot of these things are coming together for the lad and we’re pleased at that.”

But throughout the match there was a cloud looming over United. Wayne Rooney released a statement hours before kick-off reiterating his stance that he wants to leave. Rooney’s reasoning centred around ambition. Sir Alex smiled and responded: “Is it 30 trophies I’ve won, or what?” Asked if it was important not to let the saga affect morale, he added: “Absolutely, we will put it to bed tomorrow.”