Fergie: I regret lack of a Manchester parade, but it may be for the best

A planned open-top bus tour was scrapped in the wake of violence that erupted around Rangers' ill-fated UEFA Cup Final with Zenit St Petersburg a week earlier.

Council officials were also mindful of safety problems that arose in 1999, when Ferguson's Treble-winning squad paraded their trophies in front of thousands of fans.

Manchester United celebrate their 1999 Treble - but there will be not be a similar parade in the city this year

Neither Manchester nor Trafford Councils, Greater Manchester Police nor United have taken responsibility for the decision, which has been condemned by most fans, who claim a celebration that will be held in the summer is going to be too late.  

Ferguson agreed that it would have been fitting to parade the coveted Champions League trophy but given his team did not return from Russia until nearly 10pm last night, four-and-a-half hours after originally planned, it was probably a good thing.  

"It is disappointing there was no parade but maybe the fact the flight was delayed so long was a blessing," he said.  

"The fans would have been standing around for hours. Maybe they would have started drifting away and the impact would have been lost for the players."  

Hundreds did turn out at Manchester Airport for a glimpse of their heroes, who went straight from the tarmac onto a coach waiting to take them back to their Carrington training base at the end of a very long day, which included a post-match party at their team hotel in Moscow.  

"There were a lot of people at the airport but the players were tired," said Ferguson.  

"We were up early expecting to be on the road and get home but the delays tired us all. We were sitting in the airport thinking we would be 90 minutes late and it turned out to be four hours. It was a long day."  

Ferguson declared himself totally satisfied with arrangements in Moscow after so many fears had been expressed about the event.  

"The organisation was fantastic, There were all these concerns about the pitch but it certainly was not a deterrent to me. I thought it was fine.  

"Our hotel was only 10 minutes from the stadium, which was a big plus. The only problem was the delays coming back but that could happen anywhere with modern-day transport."