Ferguson swerves round Keane row

Sir Alex Ferguson has reiterated the need for focus and cohesion when Manchester United play Champions League group D rivals Lille at the Stade de France in the hope of appeasing their angry fans.

Sir Alex Ferguson has reiterated the need for focus and cohesion when Manchester United play Champions League group D rivals Lille at the Stade de France in the hope of appeasing their angry fans.

Ferguson, who has been rattled by scathing comments made by midfielder Roy Keane about the under-par performances of his teammates, was adamant he would make no comment on the incident which has threatened to lay bare the inadequacies of United's regulars.

"I've got nothing to say about it. We're here preparing for the game tomorrow and we want to concentrate to make sure we get the result we want," Ferguson told reporters Tuesday.

Keane, who will not play in Wednesday's encounter because he is injured, had castigated several team-mates in an interview that was so scathing the club's television station was ordered not to broadcast it.

Leaked details of the interview with MUTV suggested the Irishman had delivered damning verdicts on the performances of Alan Smith, John O'Shea, Kieran Richardson, Darren Fletcher and Rio Ferdinand in Saturday's humiliating 4-1 defeat by Middlesbrough.

Liam Miller, who did not play on Saturday, was also understood to have been included in a verbal broadside against the perceived lack of desire and sloppy attitude of some of United's younger players.

That has been the theme of previous rants from the notoriously short-fused Keane in the past, although he has never before directly identified the individuals he was targetting.

The interview with Keane had been due for broadcast on Monday night but was pulled after the intervention of chief executive David Gill, reportedly with the blessing of Ferguson.

The row could not have erupted at a worse time for the Scot, who is desperately trying to get United's season back on track in the wake of the Middlesbrough debacle, which has left his side trailing Chelsea by a massive 13 points in the Premiership title race.

Striker Ruud van Nistelrooy admitted morale had been affected by the defeat at Middlesbrough.

"You could talk for hours about what went wrong. It was a bad performance and we didn't do ourselves or the fans justice," said the Dutchman.

A defeat by Lille would leave United struggling to qualify for the knockout stages of the competition and would inevitably trigger renewed speculation that the Scot's 19-year tenure at Old Trafford could be drawing to a close.

However Ferguson said that despite apparent signs of turmoil, United are ready to try to make amends.

"When you lose a game, everyone's disappointed and I'm sure the players have done some soul searching since the weekend," he said.

"They have their pride and I'm sure they'll want to make it up to everbody involved at the club.

"I think what happened on Saturday, when you get a belting (beating) like that instead of drawing 1-1 or losing 1-0 it helps them to understand easier than anything else."

Ferguson had a brief glimpse back to the days when the likes of Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, David Beckham and Keane were Old Trafford's darlings in the days before Chelsea took command of the Premiership.

And the Scot admitted one of his aims against Lille is to make amends for United's recent displays, which some commentators feel are unworthy of the club's heritage.

"They (fans) are without question the people who deserve it (a result) more than anyone," said Ferguson.

"When I came to the club United were the best supported team in England and they hadn't won the league title in years.

"I know exactly how they feel. I hope they know how we feel."

Ferguson has named Ruud van Nistelrooy as the team captain for Wednesday, and said he was expecting a good display from the Dutchman's strike partner Wayne Rooney.

"It's much better having Wayne Rooney in the team than not. It will help make up for the loss of the likes of Paul Scholes," said Ferguson.

Scholes is suspended while Keane is currently sidelined with a broken foot, however the return of Wes Brown and Kieran Richardson has been welcomed by Ferguson.

It is unsure however whether Rio Ferdinand, who was blamed for allowing two of the four goals scored by Middlesbrough on Saturday, will start although Ferguson could give the England defender the nod to allow him to make his own amends to the club's fans.

Keane meanwhile may well have secured his exit out of Old Trafford.

He has already said he does not expect to be playing at United next season, although the club are hoping to dissuade him from moving on following the expiry of his current contract.