United take care of business at Bursaspor

Left-back Patrice Evra gave Manchester United FC credit for a businesslike performance as they won 3-0 to eliminate a spirited Bursaspor team from the UEFA Champions League.

The Turkish titleholders made a game of it in front of their fans at the Bursa Atatürk Stadium, but the visitors' experience showed as Sir Alex Ferguson's men scored three times after the interval. "We played possession football, kept our cool and that is how we pulled it off," said Evra. "This is our fifth consecutive win and we have every reason to feel confident about the games ahead."

The Matchday 4 encounter was billed in some quarters as the biggest in Bursaspor's history, but United goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar felt his side kept the chances of an upset to a minimum. "It's always hectic here in Turkey, but most of the time we were in control," the 40-year-old said. "I remember Bursaspor coming close a couple of times in the first half, but luckily for us the goals came quite easy for us in the second half. I knew they hadn't scored in this year's competition and I can imagine they were looking for a goal against us, but we did our job."

Bursaspor midfielder Volkan Şen could not deny their opponents' class but was nonetheless pleased with his team's showing. "We would have preferred to win of course, but I think we can be proud of our display," he said. "In the first half especially we put up a good fight, but in the end, in games like these, it all comes down to experience."

Still to score or pick up a point in Group C, the best Bursaspor can hope for is third place and a UEFA Europa League round of 32 spot, yet the Turkish league leaders remain hungry. "The difference between the Süper Lig and this competition cannot be underestimated," added Volkan Şen. "We are learning a lot from playing against all these strong teams and we will try to win our remaining games."

Team-mate Sercan Yıldırım concurred: "For Bursaspor this a learning curve and hopefully it will help the club develop."