Outclassed United admit defeat

Manchester United defender Nemanja Vidic had nothing but praise for Barcelona after they won the Champions League on Saturday.

Vidic’s side were torn apart by Barcelona, who were simply on a different level to their opponents as they ran out 3-1 winners thanks to goals from Pedro, Lionel Messi and David Villa.

“I think if you look at it we have never played a team in the past like Barcelona, they played good football and deserved to win,” Vidic told ITV after the match.

“We tried to press high and in some parts of the game we did well. The goals we lost, we didn’t do what we have to do to close their players down. When they have time on the ball they can make the final pass and that is what they did.”

Vidic’s defensive partner, Rio Ferdinand agreed with Vidic that they were outplayed and outclassed by the Spanish champions.

“We gave it a better shot this time than last time (in Rome in 2009), we had a couple of opportunities,” Ferdinand told Sky Sports.

“We got back in it at 1-1 and thought we could come back and win but it wasn’t to be, we have to give them credit.”

“A couple of the goals were preventable but you have to give credit where it’s due. They’ve got a system they work to and did it well. We had a game plan we thought could beat them, but wasn’t to be.”

The match marked the last appearance of goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar’s career, with the 40-year-old bowing out on a sour note.

“(I played) one game too many I think, it is not nice to lose of course. They had the better chances and we made one or two mistakes and they punish you,” van der Sar told ITV.

“They are very good, you have to try and score the first goal and we didn’t do that. It is not always a given, I thank everyone for the memories.”