Ferguson demands second place finish

ALEX FERGUSON has told his Manchester United team he wants to keep his atlas shut this summer and has demanded they finish second in the Premiership.

Failure to overhaul Chelsea as runners-up to champions-elect Arsenal will condemn United to a Champions League qualifier in August.

Given Ferguson’s men are already contracted to a three-game tour of the United States, two matches in the Vodafone Cup at Old Trafford, plus a likely Community Shield encounter with the Gunners in Cardiff on August 8, it is two fixtures they can well do without.

Two years ago they travelled to Hungary to face Zalaegerszeg on a rutted pitch in a game that saw Wes Brown break an ankle.

“The manager has made it perfectly clear to us that he doesn’t want to end up having to qualify for the Champions League,” said Gary Neville, whose first goal for three seasons secured maximum points against Leicester last night.

“We want to get into the competition automatically and that means finishing second.

“Apart from that, we don’t want Arsenal to win the league by a huge number of points. They are too far in front of us to catch, but we still want to get as close to them as we can.”

Second spot looks certain to hinge on the outcome of United’s clash with Chelsea at Old Trafford on May 8, a game the Red Devils will approach in far more confident mood than if it had been played two months ago.

Neville admitted it is no coincidence that a sudden improvement in form that has seen his side record four wins and a draw from their last five matches is down to the defensive stability so badly missed at the turn of the year. With Brown approaching full match fitness and returning to his best form and Neville, Mikael Silvestre and John O’Shea now permanent fixtures in United’s rearguard, they have conceded only two goals in five games and kept three clean sheets in the process.

It is the kind of statistics Red Devils’ fans have become used to down the years rather than the loss of 20 goals in 10 crucial games following Rio Ferdinand’s suspension.

“Once again the two central defenders were excellent last night,” said Neville. “There was a two-month period where we could never keep the same back four, so it’s no wonder we struggled.

“Now we have the continuity that has been there in previous seasons and we are looking good again.”

United’s lunchtime kick-off at Portsmouth on Saturday means they could leapfrog Chelsea into second spot with a victory and the visitors are likely to be boosted by the return of skipper Roy Keane and top scorer Ruud van Nistelrooy, who both missed Tuesday night’s win.