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| |  Thursday, 15 August, 2002, 07:16 GMT 08:16 UK Ferguson confident of progress  Neville (left) replaced Brown after just five minutes Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson insists his side will still win through to the full stages of the Champions League, despite a shock 1-0 defeat against Hungarian side Zalaegerszeg. "It is a shock result in the sense that they never had a kick of the ball in the second half," Ferguson admitted.
"That is a surprise - they had one attack and scored one goal. But we only have ourselves to blame. "We had some good chances. The pitch was very bumpy which is possibly a reason for the smoothness of our passing, but it is disappointing. "They played five at the back and allowed us all the possession. We had to break them down but we have had to contend with that many times before." But Ferguson remains confident that United will emerge victorious from the tie after the return leg at Old Trafford on Tuesday, 27 August. "On our own ground we will be alright," he added. "But we must get a better referee than that."
Ferguson was annoyed with the performance of German referee Wolfgang Stark, who booked both Ruud van Nistelrooy and David Beckham for dissent. "The referee was a young man and I don't think he would have made those decisions if it had been German football," he added. Zalaegerszeg coach Peter Bozsik accused United of under-estimating his team, but still does not expect to make it through to the Champions League group stages. "Maybe Manchester United took the game a bit too easy," said Bozsik. "I said before that out of 10 meetings between the sides, they would win nine and the other would be a draw. Tonight was the 11th game. "Our chances of qualifying have improved - from 2% to 5% but it is a great night for our supporters." | |
  Fergie's harsh reality
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