Win and we're through

United's inability to find a breakthrough at the Stade Velodrome left Sir Alex Ferguson frustrated at his team's creativity in the final third of the field.

Chris Smalling and Patrice Evra both caught the manager's eye in an unspectacular last 16 first-leg display, while a late foul on Wayne Rooney drew the manager's ire. But that perhaps highlights the lack of clear-cut chances and the Reds boss says United must improve back at Old Trafford next month.

"The game was disappointing to me. OK, the pitch was lively and Marseille made sure they weren't going to lose a goal," Sir Alex told ITV Sport. "[We expected more of the team], that goes without saying. We got into some good positions at times, but it wasn't enough.

"Nil-nil can can be [dangerous] if you lose a goal at home. For us it's about winning the game. If we win the game we're through. I think we have got a good chance. The referee was in a good position [to spot a foul on Rooney] at the end. I don't know why he didn't give us the free-kick. The decision after that is straight-forward. It's a red card."

That left Sir Alex with only performances in defence as a positive to take home to Manchester. "Patrice got a bit of abuse [on his first return after the World Cup], but that's to be expected. I don't think it affected his game. It was a very sound performance from Patrice. And Chris Smalling was excellent again. The boy is improving all the time. He wants to be a player and he likes defending. He gave a tremendous demonstration of centre-back play."