It was hardly a surprise that a drab Manchester derby ended goalless for the first time since 2004 given the lack of chances. For United, it was a reasonable outcome given as late as Wednesday morning, Ferguson still was not sure who was going to play. "We have done well to get a good team on the pitch," said Ferguson. "The big problems for us were Scholes and Darren Fletcher. "Scholes has been on medication for the last two days. He has not trained. Darren only trained this morning. It was an ankle injury but fortunately he was okay." The effects of the virus that has swept through the United camp this week were not obviously evident as they dominated for large periods in a disappointing game. For all their possession and territory, United created only a couple of opportunities, one for Patrice Evra before the break and another, an acrobatic Dimitar Berbatov effort, after it. On neither occasion was Joe Hart tested, leaving Ferguson frustrated at the final whistle. "I am disappointed we didn't win, we needed to win," he said. "But we only made two good chances in the game and I don't think they made any. "Maybe all the tension in the build-up to the game was too much for it to be a real spectacle. "There were good aspects to our play. We dominated and played some good football. "But teams coming here are going to find it difficult." Had it not been for those early season lapses at Fulham and Everton, United would probably have been quite pleased with their efforts. As it is, they are now four points adrift of leaders Chelsea, have lost Scholes for Saturday's trip to Aston Villa due to suspension and Rafael to injury, whilst Evra is also an extreme doubt. "Rafael is a dead leg," revealed Ferguson. "He will miss Saturday of course but it is not so bad. "Patrice has an ankle injury, which we will assess tomorrow."
