Source: SKY_Sports
Rio brushes off Euro defeat
Rio Ferdinand insists Manchester United are strong enough to bounce back from their European setback.
The Red Devils slipped to a 2-0 defeat against Barcelona in the UEFA Champions League final on Wednesday, relinquishing their grip on the continental crown they claimed 12 months earlier.
Victory would have seen United enter the record books as the first club to successfully defend the title in its current format, but it was not to be.
Ferdinand admits the disappointment of coming so close, only to come up short, has left Sir Alex Ferguson's squad downhearted, but he believes the hunger which exists within the squad will see them competing at the top again next season.
"If we had won it would have been an unbelievable end to the season but we knew if we lost we would be finishing on a low no matter what we had achieved before," he said, reflecting on a season which brought Premier League, Carling Cup and Club World Cup glory.
"We were not silly enough to think the garden will always be rosy.
"We are grown men. We can handle it. We just have to brush ourselves down and come back stronger."
He added: "The belief is still there. We have come a long way in these last few years.
"You do not lose all that by getting beaten in one match. We need strength of character now but we have it in abundance."
