Brown blow adds to United misery

Sir Alex Ferguson will wait anxiously for the results of an X-ray on Wes Brown's injured ankle knowing his defensive resources are badly stretched ahead of the Premier League opener with West Brom on Saturday.

Brown lasted just six minutes of Wednesday night's shock 1-0 Champions League qualifying defeat to Hungarian unknowns Zalaegerszegi in Budapest after coming off worst in a crunching challenge with Igor Budisa.

With Rio Ferdinand, Gary Neville and Fabien Barthez already set to miss the visit of the newly-promoted Baggies, Ferguson has little option but to stick with the back four which failed to keep out the Hungarian minnows.

"Wes was in a lot of pain and there is definitely tendon damage," said Ferguson.

"He will have an X-ray to see if there is a break but at this stage we don't know the full extent of the problem."

Ferguson was in magnanimous mood after Bela Koplarovic's last-minute winner created the biggest story in Hungarian football since the national team qualified for the World Cup in 1986.

Brown's replacement Phil Neville failed to deal with a routine clearance, allowing Tamas Szabos to charge down the left wing and provide the low cross which Koplarovic bundled home to send the home fans wild.

The unexpected reverse, at the hands of a team whose only previous European experience came in the previous round against NK Zagreb, leaves United's Champions League hopes dangling by a thread before the proper competition has even begun.

While the Red Devils will still start overwhelming favourites to qualify, if Zala were to grab a precious away goal in the return leg on August 27, United would suddenly need three to avoid the ignominy of UEFA Cup combat.

After declaring on Tuesday that failure to qualify would be 'an absolute disaster' for the club, Ferguson is sticking to his guns even though it has become a worryingly realistic prospect.

"I'm not thinking about the financial side. I'm looking at the football. The Champions League is a fantastic competition and it's one we want to be playing in," said the Scot.

"But, it's part of the romance of football that smaller teams should have a big day and I'm pleased for them. Their fans have travelled a long way and they had a great night.

"When you are away from home in Europe you expect your opponents to put up a challenge. They were very committed but we dominated the second half. However, you must take your chances."

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer struck a post before Brown's departure and Ruud van Nistelrooy had a close range effort disallowed. David Beckham also had a good chance when he raced onto Van Nistelrooy's pass but found Ilic too big an obstacle to overcome, leaving United with plenty of problems for the second leg.

"We are usually pretty hard to beat at home but Zala did not concede a goal and in Europe that is an important factor," said Ferguson.

"We are capable of getting through and maybe this game will bring us on a bit."

Ferguson was also annoyed with Van Nistelrooy and Beckham, who both picked up yellow cards for dissent.

While the Scot believed German referee Wolfgang Stark didn't have the best of games, he admitted that arguing is not going to change his mind.

"They were getting frustrated but you can't win those battles," he said. "You are always going to get a yellow card for dissent."

For the 10,000 Zala fans who had travelled the 250km to the Hungarian capital, it was a night they will never forget and the celebrations at the end won't be matched by the eventual winners of the final at Old Trafford in May.

Coach Peter Bozsik admits he still expects his team to get knocked out and said he thought United had taken his team lightly.

"Maybe Manchester United took the game a bit too easy," he said.

"I said before that out of 10 meetings between the sides, they would win nine and the other would be a draw. This was the 11th game.

"If Solskjaer had scored at the start everything would have been different. Manchester United are a terrific team and forced us to play at a higher level than we are used to. But we worked hard to earn this victory.

"Our chances of qualifying have improved from two per cent to five per cent, but it was a great night for our supporters."