MARSEILLE, France - After wins for three of the four English teams left in the Champions League, Manchester United failed to keep up its side of the bargain with a dreary 0-0 draw at Marseille.

The result leaves its last-16 tie finely poised ahead of the return leg in Manchester on March 15 and United may feel concerned by its failure to create any clear-cut chances of note at Stade Velodrome.

The low-quality fare on show at the home of the French champion on Wednesday was in stark contrast to the performances produced by United's Premier League counterparts Arsenal and Tottenham in their respective last 16 first-leg ties.

Spurs, Champions League debutant, executed a masterful smash-and-grab to beat AC Milan 1-0 in the San Siro, while Arsenal came from behind to defeat all-conquering Barcelona 2-1 in a thrilling game in north London.

Chelsea also has one foot in the last eight following a 2-0 win at FC Copenhagen on Tuesday and Rooney sympathized with any fans who had tuned in with high hopes to watch United tackle Marseille.

"I can imagine!" he said, when told by journalists that the match had not made scintillating viewing for armchair fans. "I watched both of those (Tottenham and Arsenal) games. They were great games and it's great to see Tottenham doing well in Europe."

Despite the disappointing nature of Wednesday's draw, Rooney said the onus was not on United to produce an all-out attacking performance in the second leg.

"I hope we do, but we'll just look to get the win," he said.

"At this stage of the competition, the win is the most important thing, however you do it."

In the absence of the injured Ryan Giggs, Rooney was asked to reprise the left-wing role he adopted during United's run to the final in the 2008-09 competition.

It was a task he performed with diligence, although his coach, Sir Alex Ferguson, said he was "better through the middle" after United shifted to a 4-4-2 late in the game.

"Obviously, when you're played out wide it is quite difficult to adjust if you haven't played there for a while, but we've got injuries at the moment so if I have to do that, there's no problem with that," said the England striker.

Agence France-Presse

(China Daily 02/25/2011 page22)