Ferguson is angry at losing Darren Fletcher for six weeks, starting with the home match against Aston Villa on Saturday, after he sustained a knee ligament injury in midweek during the latter stages of Scotland's 1-1 draw in a friendly with Croatia at Hampden Park.

It was George Burley's first match in charge but Ferguson took issue with the former Southampton manager at the length of game time Fletcher had.

"Darren should have played only 45 minutes, 60 minutes at most. But instead he was heading for a full game before he got injured," said the United boss.

"He had gone up to Scotland with a bad chest cold, which caused him to miss our last game (the 3-0 victory against Liverpool on Sunday).

"It is a bad blow losing Darren and again shows the futility of playing friendly games. It is crazy.

"Supporters will stop going anyway, given the kind of money they are paying and the kind of travelling they have to do.

"Every manager knows deep down these games are a waste of time."

Ferguson is unsure as to whether training camps are a viable alternative - even though Scotland have gone down that road in the past.

He said: "Walter Smith did it and Alex McLeish continued that policy.

"I actually mentioned it to Terry Venables when he was England coach - but I do not really know (what the solution is)."

However Ferguson was "delighted" to see Rio Ferdinand captain England against France in Paris.

Manager Fabio Capello handed the defender the armband in light of his impressive displays for a United side that have conceded just 15 league goals this season.

The Italian intends to move the captaincy around initially but Ferguson believes the player has done his chances on a long-term basis no harm at all even though England lost 1-0.

He said: "Fabio is looking to experiment with other players but Rio is first on the oche.

"That will give him a head start and he represented his country well, despite the result."

Ferdinand will again marshal the back line at Old Trafford as United head into an important week at home and abroad.

They follow the Villa match by facing Roma in Italy on Tuesday in the first leg of the Champions League quarter-finals.

With seven games remaining, Ferguson's leaders are five points ahead of Chelsea, six clear of Arsenal and have an impressive goal difference of plus 49.

The Scot has taken great heart from the emphatic victory against Liverpool and called for more of the same in the coming weeks.

He said: "I need to have one eye on Roma when it comes to team selection tomorrow because it is such an important fixture.

"But that must not lessen our thoughts about the match against Villa.

"We must use the performance against Liverpool as a barometer. That game was a great sign for me. The composure in our play was top class.

"The most consistent team will win the league and we have to prove that consistency in the coming weeks."