Manchester United can still compete for the Champions League despite Basel defeat, insists Roy Keane

Manchester United are good enough to compete with the best sides in the Champions League this year despite their disappointing defeat against Basel on Wednesday night, according to former captain Roy Keane.

Jose Mourinho’s side were four wins from four going into the game but slipped to a 1-0 defeat after Michael Lang’s took advantage of some slack defending from Matteo Darmian and Daley Blind to tuck away the winner in the 89^th minute.

That leaves them needing to avoid a 6-0 defeat at home to CSKA Moscow in a fortnight’s time in order to qualify, with a point guaranteeing them top spot in the group.

However, Keane, who is so often one of the club’s harshest critics, believes United have the squad to compete with Europe’s best this season, even though the bookmakers only make them sixth-favourites to lift the trophy for the first time since 2008.

“The big plus for United is that their form has been that good in the Champions League that they gave themselves room to slip up tonight,” Keane told ITV.

“When United have their strongest team out, they will compete with a lot of the teams in Europe. There are five or six players that played tonight that won't be in their strongest team.

“Mourinho is looking at the bigger picture – forget about tonight and move on. They'll be competing to win this title without a doubt.”