Why Fergie's refusal to buy a creative midfielder has left United with Euro crisis

By David McDonnell

Published 10:51 06/12/11

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So how has it come to this, Manchester United facing the prospect of Champions League elimination, despite being drawn in arguably the easiest group in the competition?

Defeat at Basel tomorrow will see United fail to make it out of the group stage for the first time since 2005, when a 2-1 defeat away to Benfica saw them make an embarrassingly early exit from the tournament.

At least on that occasion United did not have to suffer the indignity, not to mention the extra fixture burden, of dropping into the Europa League, or the UEFA Cup as it was still known then, a fate that will await them should they lose in Switzerland tomorrow.

This, remember, against a Basel side that trailed 2-0 at Old Trafford in September, only to stun United by taking a 3-2 lead, before a last-minute goal from Ashley Young salvaged a point for Sir Alex Ferguson's side. As such, the Swiss champions will be no pushovers at home.

You would normally back United, who need a point to secure their place in the last 16, to obtain the result they need under normal circumstances, but these are far from normal circumstances Ferguson and his team find themselves in.

United are without the suspended Michael Carrick, an enforced absence which, at first glance, would not appear to be such a loss, given he has made just three Premier League starts this season and has endured another traditionally slow start to the campaign.

But with Anderson and Tom Cleverley both out injured, the loss of Carrick is a major blow, with United's options restricted to Darren Fletcher, Ryan Giggs and Phil Jones, a defender whose appearances in midfield can be counted on the fingers of one hand.

It is a deeply uncomfortable position for Ferguson as he and his squad prepare to fly to Basel, but the gnawing truth is that the United manager's failure to recruit a creative midfielder of substance, to fill the void left by Paul Scholes, has come back to haunt him.

Ferguson, predictably, has declared himself happy with the squad he has, in particular his midfield options. Yet only a fool or the most blindly loyal of United fans could find agreement with the United manager on that front.

It says everything about United's paucity of talent in central midfield that Wayne Rooney has been forced to play there on several occasions this season, sacrificing his talent and goal threat where he is most effective - up front.

Only last week Ferguson accepted that decision had caused the goals to dry up for his star striker, who plundered nine in his first five Premier League games of the season but has not scored domestically since September 18.

As such, the the lack of a midfield presence with the guile and magic of the likes of David Silva, Juan Mata or Luca Modric is costing United dearly and has forced them to compromise in other positions.

Refusing to cave in to Wesley Sneijder's supposedly absurd wage demands was an admirable stance, but it was remiss of Ferguson not to be able to turn to other midfield targets when their pursuit of the Inter Milan and Holland midfielder fell down.

For central midfield was the one area, along with the goalkeeping position following the retirement of Edwin van der Sar, that was crying out for reinforcement, yet it has been neglected and now United could pay a heavy price for that.

If they manage to get the result they need against Basel and sneak into the last 16 of the Champions League, the best United can hope of is second spot, with Benfica almost certain to beat Group C minnows Otelul Galati to be confirmed as group winners.

That means a potential last 16 clash with one of Europe's other heavyweights, with Barcelona, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and Inter Milan all lying in wait, should United make it to the next stage of the competition.

By that stage, United should have Cleverley and, possibly, Anderson back from injury, but the return of that duo alone will not address the midfield shortcomings that look set to undermine their chances of success this season.

United have done well to preserve the five-point gap between themselves and leaders Manchester City, given their lack of midfield personnel and a succession of unconvincing performances from Ferguson's men in the Premier League.

At least City, playing in the Champions League for the first time, can fall back on that excuse if they exit the tournament at the group stage, with United themselves having taken several years to reach the latter stages and ultimately win it.

For Ferguson and United, three-time European Cup winners and finalists in three of the last four seasons, there can be no such mitigation if their involvement in European football's elite club competition ends tomorrow night. Only ignominy in failure.

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