United must look ahead, says Carroll

ROY CARROLL insists Manchester United cannot afford to dwell on their wasted opportunity at Craven Cottage on Monday night.

Carroll, like the rest of Alex Ferguson’s squad, was hugely disappointed with their failure to beat Fulham and take maximum advantage of Arsenal’s draw against Chelsea 24 hours earlier.

Papa Bouba Diop’s sensational late leveller kept United nine points adrift of leaders Chelsea and four behind Arsenal, who themselves trail surprise contenders Everton by a point.

It was a bitter blow to the Red Devils, who dominated most of the contest and felt Alan Smith’s first-half opener had put them on their way to a fifth straight league win.

But with a packed Christmas programme looming, Carroll said United must not let the pain of the result linger, which could be bad news for relegation-threatened Crystal Palace, who visit Old Trafford on Saturday.

“To concede in the last three or four minutes like that makes it feel more like a defeat than a draw,” said the Northern Ireland international.

“It’s really disappointing because we had enough chances to win the game and hit the post twice. But we are professional players. We have to get on with it.”

Ferguson will hope to have top scorer Ruud van Nistelrooy available to face Iain Dowie’s men after the Dutchman was again forced to sit out Monday night’s contest with a calf problem. Ferguson said: “He was close, to a degree, but he was still getting a little ache just below his calf.”

The United boss is determined not to risk any long-term damage by playing van Nistelrooy when he is not fully fit but, with Louis Saha also on the injured list, the importance of the former PSV man to his side’s title challenge has never been more evident.

In nine Premiership matches with van Nistelrooy in the side, United have won seven and drawn two. In eight games without him, the Red Devils have recorded just two victories.

And while Ferguson continues to insists his team will be a major force in this season’s title race, if they lose any more ground during a festive programme that includes testing trips to o Aston Villa and Middlesbrough, their challenge will virtually be over.

It leaves the United boss facing a tricky dilemma ahead of the Palace game, although, with or without his most lethal marksman, he remains confident his team will present Chelsea with a serious threat come April and May.

“Nine points is a big gap,” he said.

“We are climbing the hill again but we have done that many times before and we will get there.”