Manchester United v Cluj – live! - The Guardian (blog)

Sir Alex Ferguson has warned his Manchester United team they will be vulnerable to another bad defeat against Manchester City unless they drastically improve the "Cartoon Cavalcade" defending that has left their manager contemplating whether they have ever looked so susceptible at the back during his 26 years in charge.

Ferguson said he had been dismayed by United's defensive record and reported "absolutely no chance" of Nemanja Vidic featuring in Sunday's derby now his captain has pulled out of a possible comeback in their Champions League tie against Cluj at Old Trafford on Wednesday.

This season United have conceded 21 goals from 15 league fixtures, their highest since the corresponding point of the 2001-02 campaign, when they finished third. Between them, Anders Lindegaard and David de Gea have been beaten 32 times in all competitions. Last season at this stage it was 23, though that figure is skewed by the six that were conceded in one match against City. There have been four clean sheets.

Ferguson, who intends to play Wayne Rooney in an otherwise vastly changed lineup against Cluj specifically to hone his sharpness for Sunday, was particularly aggrieved by the defending in Saturday's 4-3 win at Reading and plans to arrange extra practice at dealing with set pieces before the weekend.

"We're getting punished for every ball that goes in the box at the moment but, saying that, we should still be defending far better," Ferguson said. "Reading produced some fantastic balls into the box but we do, and should, expect better. It's a worry, it's a concern. If we perform like that on Sunday, then God knows what's going to happen to us."