Even by the standards to which Manchester United have grown accustomed, the red carpet rolled out in Denmark yesterday remarkable.

"Manchester United are more than welcome" was the message displayed in readiness at bus shelters across the country's fourth city. Bruce Rioch, the Aalborg manager, reeled off the names of the Busby Babes while his captain, Thomas Augustinussen, was overwhelmed by the build-up. "This is the biggest press conference I've been to. Incredible," he said.

But United have been here before – or in Denmark, at least. It was in Copenhagen, 250 miles to the east, that they arrived to play the fourth game of their Champions League qualifying round two years ago and, with qualification virtually assured, fielded a weakened team which promptly lost. There then followed a monumental scrap to make it to the last 16.

There is mild pressure on United here, following the goalless draw against Villarreal and the unpredictability of a double-header with Celtic next, so United's manager, Sir Alex Ferguson, will not be making the same mistake twice. "We made a mistake with the team against Copenhagen because we were in a comfortable position and ended up scrapping to qualify," he said yesterday. "This time I will play my strongest team. The players know how important qualifying is." It means that Cristiano Ronaldo, Paul Scholes, Wayne Rooney and Dimitar Berbatov are likely to form the basis of a side which runs out into a compact stadium of just 10,800 capacity in northern Jutland.

The United manager is not in the lightest of moods. He still nurses grievances about the way that comments he made in South Africa this summer about his belief that players in their thirties at Chelsea will not develop as United's will have, to his mind, been misrepresented. All relationships with the press are off.

But last night he was beginning his close analysis of tonight's opposition – a video of their shock cup defeat to a second division side last Friday was to be consumed, along with reports from his brother, Martin, who has seen them twice, Berbatov knows a thing or two about them, though. The Danes were 2-0 up at White Hart Lane in the Uefa Cup last November – evidence of their threat – when the Bulgarian's goal started a comeback which led to a 3-2 win.

Ferguson said he saw in Berbatov's performance in the win against Bolton on Saturday evidence of what he has paid £30m for. "You understand how good he is in his terms of movement and ability to lead the line. Some of his passes and control and balance were fantastic," Ferguson said.

Another man qualified to discuss sluggish starts is Rioch, who signed Dennis Bergkamp for £7.5m from Internazionale back in 1995 and saw him struggle before blossoming into arguably the top division's finest asset. "It took Dennis seven games to get off the mark at Arsenal," Rioch said. "We were unbeaten in seven games at the time but when you've paid £7m for a player – and that was in 1995 – there's pressure. He got a brace against Southampton and history shows he spent 10 years [excelling]." On Berbatov he had this: "Silky classy. good talent, good touch, scores goals, good pairing with [Robbie] Keane [at Spurs], good player. But sometimes movement from one team to another takes time to adjust."

Ferguson declared himself satisfied that referee Rob Styles had apologised to Bolton yesterday for the penalty which set United on their way to a 2-0 victory on Saturday. He has left Gary Neville at home to rest a thigh strain as part of a new regime in which Ferguson expects his captain to be available for only one game a week. The position regarding Owen Hargreaves is less straightforward, with the player still troubled by a knee injury which arrived at Old Trafford with last summer. "He has had all the treatment but now and again it still flares up," Ferguson said. "There is nothing we can do about it."

Ferguson believes United will arrive as a force next month: "The fitness and speed is coming. I said by October it would come and we're fine." He is banking on his side being a day ahead of schedule

Aalborg (4-1-3-2): Zaza; Bogelund, Olfers, Beauchamp, Pedersen; Augustinussen; Enevoldsen, Johansson, Due; Curth, Saganowski.

Manchester United (4-2-3-1): Van der Sar; Brown, Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra; Scholes, Fletcher; Ronaldo, Rooney, Nani; Berbatov.