Manchester
United should focus on winning the Europa League this season, which would bring
the club a trophy they have never won and secure qualification for next
season's Champions League, former manager Alex Ferguson has said.
United
are fifth in the Premier League and sit four points behind fourth-placed
Liverpool, though they have two games in hand on the Merseyside club.
A
top-four finish would ensure Champions League qualification but Ferguson, who
was in charge at Old Trafford for some 27 years, believes United have a great
opportunity to qualify by winning Europe's second-tier club competition.
"The
thing is, we've never won the Europa League," he told ESPN. "We've
never won Uefa Cup, what it used to be. And we've got a great draw. I'm not
saying it's a certainty, but they've got a great chance.
"It's
still a European trophy. And if you win it, you get into the Champions League.
The incentive is greater to do that."
English
clubs have failed to win a European title since Chelsea's Champions League win
in 2012.
Ferguson,
who won two Champions League trophies and a Cup Winners' Cup at United, said
success on the European front is cyclical.
"In
the '70s, Ajax and Bayern Munich; '80s, Liverpool; '90s Italy, AC Milan. And
then England had a great spell," the 75-year-old Scot added.
"At
the moment, the cycle is with the Spanish teams. And they're best, that's why
they're winning it.
United
visit Belgian outfit Anderlecht in the first leg of their Europa League
quarterfinal on April 13 before hosting the return a week later.
Comments
Post a Comment