Smith forced to run an engine 'without oil', insists Sir Alex

SIR Alex Ferguson yesterday sympathised with Rangers after their Uefa Cup final defeat to Zenit St Petersburg at the City of Manchester stadium but advised supporters to celebrate the "miracle" which helped bring them to Manchester.

The Manchester United manager had the unusual experience of being applauded into the home of his side's fiercest rivals on Wednesday night, and he returned the compliment when praising the efforts of Rangers on their passage to a first European final in 36 years. Although he hopes his own up-coming Russian engagement offers more reason to celebrate next Wednesday, when Manchester United take on Chelsea in the Champions League final in Moscow.

He promised a better spectacle than last season's FA Cup final, which was the last time these teams met in a showpiece occasion. He based this theory on the main reason he felt Rangers were defeated on Wednesday. By having not played since last Sunday, both United and Chelsea will be raring to go when they clash, he said. Rangers, by contrast, suffered from the consequences of a congested end of season, with the match against Zenit having fallen amidst a packed league programme of games for the Ibrox side. He likened Rangers manager Walter Smith's task to seeking to run an engine "without oil".

By the time United take to the field next Wednesday in Moscow – the match kicks off at 10.45pm local time – Rangers will have played two further matches, against Motherwell and St Mirren. The intense nature of this schedule has helped sabotage their chances of lifting European silverware, said Ferguson, although he did concede that Zenit were not just the more dynamic team, but also the better one on the night.

Not even an eve-of match visit from Ferguson could inspire Rangers, with the squad based at a hotel just a mile from the United manager's home.

"I was disappointed for Walter," said Ferguson, at a media conference in Carrington, Manchester United's training base, yesterday. "Zenit were fresher, and much sharper," he said. "That's down to the fact Rangers have had so many games, I think. But most importantly Zenit were technically far better, and also the better team."

He continued: "When you have played so many games, the first half an hour, and getting the legs going again, is always the problem. You have to try to get the engine running again. It's like running a car without oil.

"I thought Rangers had got over that at half-time. I thought 'they have a chance here'. Zenit weren't that brilliant. They had better players, and were better technically. But they weren't so much better that you thought Rangers are going to get slaughtered here."

Ferguson pointed to the chance scorned by Jean-Claude Darcheville in the second-half and the subsequent appeal for a penalty when Barry Ferguson's attempt to hit the loose ball across goal struck Igor Denisov's arm as key moments.

"Maybe it could have changed (the game]," he said. "If Rangers had scored then, you felt they might go on to win it. But at the end of the day, it was a miracle they got there. With the players he has, Walter has done a fantastic job. It was just maybe a game too far in terms of the mental side of things. There was always this thought that it was never going to last, and that it had to end at some point."