Rio Ferdinand: United bound? (StuForster/Allsport)

The Manchester United manager will have felt huge pride in the efforts of Nicky Butt and Paul Scholes and the steely resolve shown by David Beckham from the penalty spot.

But there must also have been anguish as the purchase price for Rio Ferdinand rattled upwards before his eyes. Ferguson made a £25 million bid for the Leeds defender before taking his holiday but Friday's gargantuan performance by Ferdinand left the mark at £30m and rising.

That is enough to wipe out the cash Leeds manager David O'Leary is required to pay back to his plc bosses in lieu of failure to qualify for next season's Champions League.

As if that is not enough for Ferguson to ponder, there was also the disturbing sight of a disconsolate Juan Sebastian Veron being substituted at half-time. Selling Veron would be the best way to raise the money to buy Ferdinand but the Argentinian may now fetch a reduced price after way he was overshadowed by his United pals.

The Premiership paid no respect to the £28.1m Argentina captain as he struggled through a troubled season after moving from Lazio. And on Friday, Ferguson's home-grown crop exposed the frailties of reputedly the world's finest midfield player.

This must have been satisfying for Butt, reduced to a bit-part role by Veron's arrival at Old Trafford. And it was an accidental collision in training with the Argentinian which condemned Butt to a five-week fit-ness fight for the World Cup.

Then there was Scholes, so often played out of position because of Veron that he feared he would not make it to Japan and Korea. Scholes was named man-of-the-match, although the majority of England fans at Sapporo felt tireless Butt shaded it.

Beckham took the responsibility, as captain, to strike the winning penalty but none stood as tall and imposing as Ferdinand.

There are great defenders on show in Japan, Italy's Alessandro Nesta and Fabio Cannavaro to name but two. Both would help Ferguson stabilise the creaking United defence, which left them without a trophy last season. But none quite as much as Ferdinand.

Comfortable on the ball - an uncommon trait in English-born centre-backs - Ferdinand has eradicated that capacity from his younger days to commit at least one fundamental error in every game.

He performed with cultured assurance and a positive relish for rough and tumble physical combat. Standing shoulder to shoulder with the superbly supportive Sol Campbell, Ferdinand represented the rock on which Argentina were to founder.

Ferdinand said: 'It definitely enhances your reputation if you can withstand the pressure of combating the world's top strikers. I enjoyed myself thoroughly.'