Sir Alex Ferguson has claimed that having months to reflect on the painful defeat in Rome against Barcelona will make United come back stronger this season.

“Adversity is always an important factor in developing and improving,” said Ferguson. “I have always reacted well to adversity over the years and whenever we lose a match I tell my players that the next game is the important one – the match we have to focus on. That has always been the case here at the club. When you lose the last game of the season you have two or three months to reflect on the disappointment. We have not enjoyed that. But we will cope – and we will bounce back.”