Rio Upbeat Despite Draw

Rio Ferdinand was as disappointed as anyone by Manchester United's 2-2 draw at Cardiff City but tried to stay positive after Sunday's stalemate.

Despite first-half goals by Wayne Rooney and Patrice Evra, the Reds were denied all three points by Kim Bo-Kyung's injury-time equaliser.

While acknowledging the champions should have secured victory earlier, Ferdinand insists the Reds should not view the late concession as a calamity.

"We set out to win and are disappointed not to do so, but other big clubs will come here and drop points," Rio said. "We're unhappy we didn"t close the game out but, looking back at the end of the season, we may say this was a point gained rather than two lost.

"[Cardiff's equaliser] was the last free-kick of the game and a silly one to give away - we didn't defend it as well as we should have. It's happened a couple of times this season and we have to put it right.

"But nothing's given out now so it doesn't matter what the table looks like, as long as we're within touching distance. We'll keep looking to pick up points, build momentum and push our way up the table."

United must now quickly move on to the Champions League game at Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, when victory would secure a place in the knockout stages of the competition.

"We want to finish the job, get it done early so we can get back to the Premier League and have nothing else distracting us," Ferdinand added. "They're a well-equipped team and it's not going to be easy but we're more than capable."