Ferguson has already hinted he will make changes for the Old Trafford encounter against the Danish minnows in a bid to ensure the United side that faces Tottenham at White Hart Lane in the Premier League on Saturday is fresh and raring to go.

It means Ferdinand could miss out, just as he was omitted from the side that reached next month's Carling Cup semi-final by beating Blackburn last week.

The 30-year-old can understand the logic. But as a player desperate to be involved as much as possible, the news will not be greeted with pleasure if it is eventually delivered.

"Players do not just accept they will miss games," he said.

"I like playing. When the manager told me I was not playing last Wednesday, I still wanted to.

"It is a chance to win another trophy and you want to be involved.

"I actually prefer to play two games a week. We are used to it and you get the momentum of playing every week.

"Missing matches is not something I rub my hands about."

Just by looking around the United dressing room, Ferdinand will see how important it is for Ferguson to keep everyone happy.

He only persuaded Jonny Evans not to leave for Sunderland in the summer by promising the Northern Ireland international he would be involved with the first team more often this term.

And even Ferdinand can see the benefit Evans would get from increased European exposure.

"It is great to have youngsters pushing through," said the England defender.

"Whenever Jonny has been called upon, he has done admirably.

"He is a young player with great talent and Roy Keane was quite interested in taking him to Sunderland when he was there so that speaks volumes about him.

"He is working hard on the training pitch and that usually means you get a bit of luck when you play."

Ferguson is free to make changes as the Red Devils have already booked their place in the knockout phase, while Aalborg know they will be in the UEFA Cup when the European campaigns begin again in February.

Who wins Group E - and gets a top seeding among the last 16 - is still to be decided, with United needing to match Villarreal's result against Celtic at Parkhead to edge it.

Not that Ferdinand thinks it matters too much. With Real Madrid and Bayern Munich among the potential opponents for the eight group winners, finishing top is no guarantee of progression.

Indeed, should the remaining three English teams finish runner-up in their pools, it could be better for United to join them, thus widening the list of possible opponents in the knockout stage.

"Finishing top is not the be-all and end-all," said Ferdinand.

"The manager always likes it. But you have Real Madrid and Bayern Munich going to finish second, who are big clubs, so you can still get a massive game in the next round even if you win the group.

"It would be nice to finish top but it would not be a catastrophe if we ended up second."