United wear Fergie disappointment

Sir Alex Ferguson criticised Manchester United after they let slip a two goal lead slip in the 3-3 draw with Basel in the Champions League.

It had looked like being a routine win for the English Premier League side on Tuesday after a Danny Welbeck brace had given them a comfortable lead at Old Trafford.

But three goals after the break from the Swiss champions looked like securing the most unlikely of wins, before Ashley Young struck in the final minute of normal time to salvage a point for his team.

Speaking after the match, Ferguson voiced his frustration at his team’s inability to hold on to their lead, but said he was glad that the performance had come so early on in the competition.

“I think we were careless. They made two or three openings in the first half and a lack of concentration kills us,” Ferguson said.

“We threw the game away really and, after that really good performance in the first-half, we were left grappling at the end of the game to get a result.”

But the United manager said there were positives to take from the match, before disputing the penalty given away by Antonio Valencia that allowed Basel to take the lead in the second half.

“(It’s) positive it’s happening at this point in the comp and not later on,” he said.

“I think it’s a wake-up call, losing three goals at home you have to be better than that in terms of concentration. If you’re lax in quality, the quality the Champions League is, it can make you suffer.”

“I don’t think it was a penalty. You can see quite clearly that (Antonio) Valencia’s won the ball. It’s a poor decision as far as I’m concerned – disappointing.”

“The referee kept getting in the road in the game. Whenever a pass comes forward he’s in the road, I think he wanted to play. What can you do?”

Basel boss Thorsten Fink was delighted with his side for claiming a point at Old Trafford, leaving them undefeated in the group stage so far.

“The team has shown what kind of morale we have and what potential we have to play football,” Fink said.

“We did not want to hide, we wanted to capitalise on those small weaknesses in United’s defence – and that’s what we did in the end.”

“A 3-3 here in the Theatre of Dreams is a nice result, but if I had dared to dream, I would have dreamt of a win. The fact that we were not very far from achieving that makes me incredibly happy.”