United left contemplating emotional and financial cost of failure

A bad day at the office, prompted by their lack of match practice? Or evidence of a deeper malaise? That was the question being pondered by Manchester United supporters yesterday as they reflected on the defeat by Zalaegerszeg in Budapest on Wednesday night.

Sir Alex Ferguson tended towards the former explanation, in public at least. United, though rusty in their first outing of the season, controlled the second-half and only had themselves to blame for missing chances. Redemption would come in the second leg at Old Trafford on 27 August.

It had better. Otherwise United will miss out on the riches of the Champions' League for the first time in seven years. As Ferguson said beforehand, that would be "an absolute disaster", and with the final in Manchester the impact would be emotional as well as financial. There remains the consolation of the Uefa Cup but United regard themselves as above that. Their status and budget demand matches the likes of Real Madrid and Bayern Munich, not Ipswich and Fulham.

United ought to restore order in the second leg, but that is what Internazionale thought when they lost to Helsingborg at this stage two years ago. United's failure to score does concern Ferguson – if Zalaegerszeg get one United will need three.

Since United will then have two Premiership matches under their belt they should be sharper than on Wednesday and the prospect of failure will produce a greater sense of urgency. While United did not lack desire on Wednesday, Zalaegerszeg, who approached the tie like a lower division team in the FA Cup, were so committed even Roy Keane lost a 50-50 tackle.

United may also be reinforced by the return of Fabien Barthez and Rio Ferdinand. Ferguson will hope so. For the first time in years his squad looks thin. England's World Cup midfield, Nicky Butt and Paul Scholes, may have illuminated the bench but the rest lacked lustre. When Ruud van Nistelrooy and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer began missing chances Ferguson looked along the line and saw only Diego Forlan, who has now gone 19 appearances without a goal. When Wes Brown was injured he had to call upon Phil Neville, whose sad decline was underlined when he was at fault for the goal which will keep Bela Koplarovics in fine tokaij for life. The substitute goalkeeper, meanwhile, was Ben Williams, a youngster who has not even played in the Worthington Cup.

The transfer window, for Premiership and European games, closes on 31 August. United should tie up the proposed signing of Rennes' French Under-21 defender Julien Escude by then but the most urgent need is for a fourth striker. Ferguson also admitted that, if Barthez is out for long, goalkeeping cover may be required.

Incidentally, the United manager was not being patronising or ironic when he said he felt pleased for Zalaegerszeg. A football romantic, he appreciated their joy, and also, having grown up in Hungarian football's golden age, what the result meant to the country at large.

Even before Zalaegerszeg scored, a palpable sense of pride had formed in the stadium. Hungarian football has had precious little to cheer in recent years and while Otto Vincze, Krizstian Kenesei and Tamas Szamosi are hardly Ferenc Puskas, Sandor Kocsis and Florian Albert they at least restored some of the lustre to Hungary's reputation. The bid to host the 2008 European Championships may be wildly optimistic but there were signs, in the ongoing redevelopment of the stadium, and in the play both of Zalaegerszeg and the children involved in a small-sided match at half time, that one of football's most historic nations could be out of intensive care and into recovery.

While the BBC would never admit it in public, not least because Ferguson is convinced that the corporation is anti-United – despite being run by Greg Dyke, a former Old Trafford director – they were also delighted.

Not only are they now guaranteed a huge audience for a second leg that many anticipated would be a non-event, but they can also enjoy the knowledge that ITV executives are sweating over the prospect of losing the biggest jewel in their Champions' League crown. Many a Nationwide League chairman, as he attempts to balance a budget shattered by ITV Digital's betrayal, will be just as pleased.