Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson has no regrets about committing his players to the exhausting, but prestigious and successful trip to Yokohama for their Club World Cup triumph.

"We tend to be parochial about football in Britain," he said. "But the opportunity to become world champions is something money can't buy.

"United didn't become a global name by staying home. We are a big club and bidding to become world champions is what we're all about.

"So, we had to be in Japan, even though it makes our domestic ambitions just that little bit harder to achieve."