Regrets, there area few, for Ferguson

Lille OSC v Manchester Utd:In the pantheon of great football managers, Alex Ferguson has accumulated enough trophies to take his place at any top table, but there is one statistic from his extraordinary career that can still elicit a frown.

One European Cup in 20 years as Manchester United's manager is a superior record to Arsenal, Chelsea and many others, but for a club of such bloated resources does one solitary triumph in 1999, as exhilarating as it was, really constitute success?

The answer was provided by Ferguson himself after his arrival in foggy France for the first leg of tonight's Champion League encounter against Lille.

The draw has been kind to the Premiership leaders and Ferguson is entitled to believe his injury-free side are accomplished enough to reach the quarter-final stage for the fifth time in nine seasons. Yet there was a notable hint of regret as he went through the club's record in Europe during his two decades in charge.

"I think we should have done better," he conceded. "We have consistently qualified for the quarter-finals and the semi-finals but when you look at the other winners of the competition, then, yes, we really ought to have won it more times.

"We've won it twice whereas Bayern Munich, Ajax and Liverpool have won it four or five times. I'm excluding, of course, Real Madrid (nine-times winners) and AC Milan (six times), whose performances have been exceptional. But I really think we should have done better."

Taking the 1968 win into account, United's record of only two European Cups puts them alongside Benfica, Porto, Internazionale, Juventus, Barcelona and, as Brian Clough never tired of reminding Ferguson, Nottingham Forest.

At 65, Ferguson is also aware he will not have many more chances to add to that tally and he was asked whether it would represent failure to end his career without at least one more title. "I couldn't look upon it as a failure in my life," he responded.

"I'm satisfied and happy with what I have achieved and when I pop the key in my football life I won't be disappointed. But football is a game where you have to keep winning, particularly at a club like United."

Ferguson was anxious to point out that his is a side being built for the next five years in mind, not the next three months. "It is difficult to say how long players like (Ryan) Giggs, (Paul) Scholes and (Gary) Neville can play at the very top but the younger players are the future.

"We expect and hope that our calculations are right about them and we have a big chance of winning things. Hopefully, the European Cup is one of them."

It certainly does not reflect well on a club with United's aspirations that they have won only one knock-out tie, against Deportivo La Coruna in 2002, since winning the treble in 1999, yet it would be a considerable shock if that record was not improved against Lille.

This is the first time the French side have reached this stage of the competition and one local journalist asked Ferguson yesterday if he was surprised to be playing a team with "no stadium, no stars and no money" Whatever happens, Ferguson has warned his players to expect a feisty battle. United's manager has repeatedly referred to Lille in derogatory terms since the two sides met in last season's competition, complaining bitterly about what he saw as unduly aggressive and negative tactics.

He put on a diplomatic front last night, describing them as a better team this season. "Lille's progress has been fantastic," he said. "They are organised, aggressive and quick, and will be tough to beat." His true feelings, however, can be estimated by one rant last season. "For the last 40 minutes (of a 0-0 draw at Old Trafford) we had 10 men (Paul Scholes had been sent off) yet they still didn't have one bloody shot at goal. It depressed me, that. They were happy playing for 0-0 with 10 men behind the ball. It was pathetic."

Guardian Service