UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: BURSAPOR V MANCHESTER UNITED:ALEX FERGUSON used Manchester United's arrival in Turkey for the latest round of Champions League group matches as the platform to argue that the competition does not need a change in format.

Ferguson spoke of his belief it had now overtaken the World Cup as the biggest tournament on the planet and, pressed to explain why, he was emphatic.

“Have you seen the last six World Cups? Christ, you’d be better going to the dentist.”

Few people in football have greater affection for the European Cup than the man whose team lifted the trophy in 1999 and 2008 but a perception has grown that the group stages can be predictable, even mundane at times, and United’s arrival in the mountains of north-west Turkey was distinctly low-key.

Playing in Turkey used to be football’s equivalent of swimming in piranha-infested waters but, rather than flares and “Welcome to Hell” banners, the team arrived at Bursa airport to find a welcoming committee waiting to present Ferguson and Bobby Charlton with flowers.

Bursaspor are moderate opponents, losing every match so far, and Ferguson has felt confident enough to rest Rio Ferdinand even though he already has five players – Wayne Rooney, Michael Owen, Ryan Giggs and long-term absentees Antonio Valencia and Owen Hargreaves – missing through injury and four others – Darron Gibson, Jonny Evans, Anderson and Federico Macheda – not on the trip because of a virus.

“We’re not disrespecting or under-rating Bursaspor,” Ferguson said. “Bursaspor are top of their league and you’ve got to give respect to anyone who is top of their league.

“We understand that facing Turkish sides is very difficult because we’ve experienced that when we’ve played Besiktas and Galatasaray and Fenerbahce in the past; all difficult games.”

Yet, the issue remains that there is a clear imbalance of talent at this phase of the tournament. United could be on the verge of qualifying with two games to spare if they win in the 25,000-capacity Bursa Ataturk stadium and Ferguson acknowledged it is not until the knock-out stages of the competition that it truly comes to life.

“It’s a natural thing, the same as the Premier League,” he said. “The fact is you won’t get the same crowd or attention or drama if you saw Arsenal, for example, playing against one of the smaller teams rather than playing United.

“It’s the same in Europe but, in my mind, this is the best competition in the world now – better than the World Cup.

“Yes, you have to get through the group stages before you get to the stage where it gets really exciting, but it’s still a fantastic tournament.”

Ferdinand has remained in Manchester, with Ferguson mindful of the back problems that have troubled the England defender over the past two years, and that means Chris Smalling will partner Nemanja Vidic in defence.

“With young players, you always have to give them time but, fortunately for the lad, he has come in and taken to it very quickly,” Ferguson said of the €12 million signing who joined from Fulham in the summer.

“He has the physical side. He is very intelligent, a tall lad and quick with the ball, and we want to give him as much experience as we can.”

The list of absentees is, however, a concern for the United manager, with only two recognised strikers, Dimitar Berbatov and Javier Hernandez, on the trip.

Giggs has played in all 33 Manchester derbies since his debut in 1991 but United’s longest-serving player is a serious doubt for the game at Eastlands next week, with Ferguson saying he was likely to be out for a minimum of 10 days.

As for Rooney’s ankle injury, it is a confusing picture, not least because of the frequency with which Ferguson changes the prognosis.

After initially saying last Friday that Rooney would be out for three weeks, Ferguson then changed that to five weeks when speaking to Sunday newspaper journalists, and the latest update has altered again. “He did a bit of running for the first time yesterday and I was quite surprised by that,” Ferguson said. “He is keen to get back.

“I still think it will be three weeks and a bit.”

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