Concentration the Key Says Relaxed Ferguson

Sir Alex Ferguson is looking forward to whatever motivational stunts José Mourinho might pull in the publicity build-up before the second leg, but has warned his old Chelsea adversary that once the game starts only the players can take Manchester United or Internazionale through.

"José is magnetic in terms of press attention, he can be outrageous and very entertaining," Ferguson said. "He's terrific at all that, I always enjoy watching him on television, but there's nothing he can do once the players cross the line. Then it becomes a matter of individual concentration, and I trust my players to do their jobs on the pitch."

Ferguson never went head to head with Mourinho in the Champions League while the latter was at Chelsea, and cannot help but remember that the last time the Special One was at Old Trafford in the second leg of a knockout round his Porto side were unexpected winners and eventual European Champions. "José was lucky that night, there's no doubt about it," he said. "I'm not taking anything away from the achievement of winning the Champions League with Porto, but on that particular night they were lucky to go through. We made a bad mistake at a set-piece to concede a goal, and a goal we scored was wrongly disallowed for offside."

After spending hours considering whether 0-0 away from home in the first leg is a good result or a bad one, Ferguson has decided to take a positive attitude. "We've yet to concede a goal and 0-0 has got to be a great result because we've given ourselves every chance," he said. "The danger is obviously letting them get an away goal, but if that happens we've got to be composed enough to deal with it. Ninety minutes is a long time in European football, and that's why the players' concentration is vital. It's a prerequisite for victory. I was very pleased with the level of concentration we showed in Italy, and though we might not have looked our best at Newcastle the other night there is a great deal of difference between the two situations. We were right on our mettle in Milan, the concentration level was fantastic, and it is not always easy to reproduce that intensity every time you run out for a Premier League game."