Sir Alex wary of Madrid threat

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson says the UEFA Champions League is Real Madrid's ultimate goal ahead of Wednesday's last-16 first leg at the Bernabeu.



Los Blancos are currently 16 points adrift of La Liga leaders Barcelona and have recently slipped up against Granada, Valencia and Osasuna domestically.

With little hope of defending their Spanish crown, Ferguson believes opposite number Jose Mourinho will be determined to steer Real to claiming Europe's top trophy for the first time in 11 years at Wembley in May.

Ferguson said: "I think their target is the European Cup. They got a bad start in the league and were chasing their tail a bit because Barcelona's form has been incredible. I think Jose has set his targets firmly on the European Cup, no doubt about that.

"It can be harder for us but there's a bit of pressure for them too. At this moment in time we're involved in three things. Jose has still got the semi-final of the Copa del Rey, they play Barca next week and then again in a league game before we play them on the Tuesday at Old Trafford. So they've got a big programme themselves.



"You look at English football and say it's a very, very difficult programme and every game is hard but you look at Madrid's programme at the moment and it's also very difficult. Every game is hard."

Fergie: No one-man team

Sir Alex Ferguson has rejected claims that Manchester United are turning into a one-man team.



Much has been made of Robin van Persie's impact since his arrival at Old Trafford last summer, but Ferguson insists there is more to his team than the in-form Dutch striker.

Van Persie has scored 10 goals in his last 10 appearances and earned warm praise from his manager, but Ferguson is anxious to point out that he is not their only threat.

"I don't go along with the idea we have become a one-man team," Ferguson told United Review.

"There was a time in our history when one man did carry us for a while. Eric Cantona kept us in contention with his goals when a few others were off the boil.

"But things are quite different now. Javier Hernandez has weighed in with 12 goals while Wayne Rooney is currently on nine.

"Two defenders, Johnny Evans and Patrice Evra, have chipped in with eight between them so it doesn't stand up to see us as a one-man band overly dependent on van Persie, brilliant as he has been at both making and taking goals.

"He is absolutely relishing his new challenge. He is the right player, at the right club, at the right time.



"He has a winning mentality, but as he points out, it is one that goes right through the squad and one that will hopefully see us push on in both league and the cups and successfully navigate what is a busy and challenging period."


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Ronaldo now the complete player

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has described Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo as 'the complete player'.



The 27-year-old is due to make his first return to Old Trafford next month, when the two clubs face each other in the Champions League and Ferguson says the Portugal international has improved since leaving England.



"Maturity brings many things," he told Inside United.



"When I went to see them play against (Manchester) City, some of his decision-making in terms of passing was brilliant. One-touch passing, good crosses.



"In the six years we had him, you just saw his game grow all the time, and he was a fantastic player.



"Now you see the complete player.



"His decision-making, his maturity, his experience, plus all the great skills he has got, they all make him the complete player."



Manchester United travel to Spain for the first leg on February 13 before entertaining Madrid at Old Trafford on March 5 and Ferguson is looking forward to the games.



"Obviously you hope that when you draw Real Madrid it's in the final," he said.



"It will be a big, big event - we're the two most high-profile clubs in the world and I think they will be great games."

Ferguson upbeat on Bebe loan

Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson says Bebe's loan move to Portugal will help boost the striker's stuttering career.



The £7.4million 22-year-old forward, who arrived at Old Trafford from Portuguese club Guimaraes in 2010, has secured a temporary contract at Rio Ave until the end of June.



"We feel the boy has got to get good experience at a better level than our reserve team," Ferguson told MUTV.



"He's gone to Rio Ave who are fifth in the Portuguese league at the moment - they have a young coach [Nuno] who has a very good reputation.



"Bebe has done quite well in the last two or three months. He got a cruciate knee injury when he was on loan in Turkey last season and that derailed him for a bit.



"Coming back from these injuries takes time but he's started to develop quite well. Hopefully his spell in Portugal, where he is from anyway, could help him."



Having made the move at the end of 2012, Bebe said: "I'll give it everything while I'm here and try to help the team to continue occupying the places that they have been in the table.



"Obviously something went wrong in the last phase of my career, I had a serious injury which thankfully I have fully recovered well from.



"I'm fine physically - I was always training and playing. It's good to come here and I want to show what I can do."

Pardew excited by Fergie clash

Alan Pardew has warned Sir Alex Ferguson there will be two angry managers in the dug-outs when Newcastle head for Manchester United on Boxing Day.



The Scot was apoplectic after Sunday's 1-1 Premier League draw at Swansea which saw the leaders drop two precious points, but also striker Robin van Persie react furiously after being struck in the back of the head by the ball when defender Ashley Williams blasted it into him as he lay on the ground.



Ferguson later voiced the opinion that the Dutchman could have been killed in the incident and called for retrospective action to be taken, and he was not placated by Williams' insistence that it had been accidental.



All in all, he was not a happy man as he left South Wales, but Pardew has admitted he is still smarting too despite ending a run of six league defeats in seven attempts with a 1-0 win over QPR on Saturday.



He said: "I'm not happy either. Although we have won, the away form hasn't been great, so there will be two teams with a little bit to prove, two managers smarting a little bit with their teams.



"It will make for a really professional game. Sometimes on Boxing Day, you can get a loose game - I don't think this will be."



The Van Persie incident understandably made headlines, although Pardew believes Ferguson's outspoken comments were made in the heat of the moment.



He said: "Retrospective action is important because as we saw with [Everton's Marouane] Fellaini the other day at Stoke, children shouldn't be seeing incidents like that on TV.



"I think the one with Van Persie was perhaps not as bad as Alex at first imagined. Sometimes from the sideline, it looks a lot worse at the time.



"I'm not sure whether there will be action taken for that, but certainly elbows and off-the-ball incidents, that's a good feature that the FA have brought in."



United were far from at their best at the Liberty Stadium with strikers Van Persie and Wayne Rooney suffering a rare off-day, and Pardew is wary of the potential response.



He said: "I remember [Fulham striker Dimitar] Berbatov not playing particularly well the week before we played him, and he probably put in the performance of the season for him against us.



"It happens. You want to roll into teams when they have off-days, that does help.



"Swansea, I think, did that, Manchester United did have an off-day and fortunately for them, they got a point out of it.



"What we have got to do is try to make it another off-day by making it equally difficult for them to play."



The win over QPR eased the Magpies' immediate fears of being dragged into the relegation zone, but with a trip to Arsenal to follow their date at Old Trafford - where they have not won in the league since February, 1972 - and Everton's New Year visit to St James' Park, they know they will have to be much closer to their best to build on a valuable three points.



Pardew said: "When you looked at the programme at the start, you could see that this was a tough run for us, and it's even tougher now with the results we have had and the injuries we have sustained.



"But I am actually going into it more buoyed than I have been at probably any other period of the season.



"We have definitely picked up, we look a little bit more resilient. We got a very important clean sheet on Saturday and I think we will be in good heart for what is one of the toughest games of the programme, Manchester United away."



Pardew, who will be without the suspended Cheick Tiote, also confirmed that Saturday's match-winner Shola Ameobi will not be joining the Ivorian at the African Nations Cup next month despite being named in the provisional Nigeria squad.



He said: "Shola won't be going to that, and the national team manager knows the reasons behind that, which I am going to keep to myself."

Ferguson confirms Vidic return

Nemanja Vidic is in contention to make his return for Manchester United in Saturday’s Premier League match against Sunderland with manager Sir Alex Ferguson delighted to have his captain available again.



Vidic had been expected to be out until Christmas after undergoing surgery on a knee injury in mid-September, but he returned to training early and it was suggested that he would take to the field against Manchester City, only for Ferguson to dismiss the idea.



The manager was unwilling to risk the Serbia international in Sunday’s Manchester derby but with an extra week behind him the defender could return to the starting line-up for the visit of Sunderland to Old Trafford.



“It would have been crazy to play him against City but against Sunderland…definitely,” said Ferguson.



“It’s a big bonus to have him back. He is a real competitor with that uncompromising way of his. He likes defending – that’s what it is.



“In the last 18 months he has only had 10 games or something. It is not many games that he has played.



“Now he has no pain in the knee, and it’s a different knee to the one he did his cruciate on.”



United’s defence has been questionable this season with the Reds having conceded 23 goals in 16 Premier League games, but Ferguson expects Vidic to make the difference.



“He’s under pressure isn’t he? But he’ll make a difference, absolutely. He gives us the options,” Ferguson added.



“And to have senior players like that, it’s helpful.”

Three-week lay-off for Anderson

Sir Alex Ferguson has confirmed Manchester United midfielder Anderson will be out for at least three weeks with a hamstring injury.



The Brazilian limped off during Saturday's win at Reading.



It came at the end of an impressive recent period for the former FC Porto star, who has brought added energy to Red Devils' ranks.



However, after a succession of major injuries, Anderson has now picked up another one that will keep him out for the remainder of the month.



"It is a hamstring," Ferguson told MUTV.



"It will be three or four weeks. It is not serious but it is a hamstring."

Fergie: Derby win will be huge

Sir Alex Ferguson says victory against Manchester City on Sunday would be one of his side's "best-ever results".



Premier League leaders Manchester United travel to the Etihad Stadium three points clear of champions City, whose European adventure ended in midweek after finishing bottom of their UEFA Champions League group.



Ferguson also expressed concern over his fragile defence and challenged his side to learn from their error-strewn display at Reading last weekend.



"If we win it will be one of our best-ever results," Ferguson told MUTV.



"They are a really good, powerful team with massive players.



"It won't be easy and if we defend like we did at Reading we'll be in trouble.



"The important thing for us is to take lessons from the mistakes we're making and do something about it. We need to find a solution."

Ferguson will not rest Rooney

Sir Alex Ferguson has no plans to rest Wayne Rooney against CFR Cluj as he looks to ensure the Manchester United striker is at peak fitness for Sunday's derby.

United face Cluj at home on Wednesday night in their final UEFA Champions League group game and top spot has already been assured.



Ferguson is expected to make several changes to his team for the game, but he is not intending to leave Rooney out ahead of the weekend's clash with local rivals Manchester City.



The United boss does not want the England international to lose any momentum after he missed the matches against Norwich City and Galatasaray last month due to illness.



And, having scored twice against Reading in the Premier League last Saturday, Ferguson wants Rooney to build on his 'best performance of the season'.



"When Wayne gets interrupted, he needs three games to get back," said Ferguson. "That's why he'll definitely play.



"Wayne needs to play a lot of games to get his match fitness up. He's a strongly-built lad and when he misses two games, it takes him three games to come back. It's the way he's always been.



"He'll play and hopefully that brings him on further. On Saturday [at Reading], that was his best performance of the season so far."

Fergie rests senior players

Sir Alex Ferguson has decided to rest a number of key players for Manchester United’s Champions League clash against Galatasary on Tuesday.



United have already secured their place in the knockout stages of the competition and with qualification already guaranteed Ferguson has taken the opportunity to rest some senior members of his squad.



Instead, the Scot has brought a young squad to Turkey with seven of the 21-man panel yet to play in the Champions League.



Nick Powell, Larnell Cole, Davide Petrucci and Ryan Tunnicliffe, striker Joshua King and defender Marnick Vermijl could all make their Champions League debut on Tuesday, while midfielder Tom Thorpe and goalkeeper Sam Johnstone could have their first senior start for the club.



Despite Wayne Rooney and David De Gea training with the squad on Monday, Ferguson has left them behind along with Rio Ferdinand, Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes and Robin van Persie as he looks to the weekend’s clash with QPR at Old Trafford.

Man United know type of manager they want next

Manchester United's owners know what 'type' of manager they want to replace Sir Alex Ferguson when he retires.

Ferguson, who turns 71 on New Year's Eve, is yet to put a date on retirement but it is widely expected to be before his 75th birthday.



The club, though, admit that they are aware of how they will go about replacing Ferguson - but vice-chairman Ed Woodward insists they will not even look at the plan until they need to.



"We have a view as to what type of manager we want and how and when we'll go about it," he is quoted by The Sun.



"But it's in the drawer and long may it stay in the drawer."



Woodward, who has already insisted the club's owners the Glazers intend to keep control of United for many years, stressed that money would always be available to bolster the squad.



He said: "Every single player Sir Alex Ferguson has wanted to buy he has been supported. Some have slipped through our fingers but we have never said that we cannot afford a player. Robin van Persie is a good example, one of the best players in the world and we easily had the financial capacity to do that.



"We have a pretty low level of leverage. Interest payments of £31million leaves a significant amount of money, around £76million and we decide what we do with that.



"We are very comfortable about the ability to fund the interest and there will be more income growth next year from the new Premier League media deal."

Rio and Evra miss Braga tie

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has opted to rest defenders Rio Ferdinand and Patrice Evra for the visit of Braga in the Champions League tonight.

Ferdinand's involvement had been in doubt after he disobeyed the Scotsman's instructions by refusing to wear a 'Kick It Out' anti-racism T-shirt ahead of their 4-2 win over Stoke at the weekend.

Ferguson has confirmed he and Ferdinand have settled their differences over the matter, but the central defender and left-back Evra will sit out the game at Old Trafford to be fresh for the trip to Chelsea in the Premier League on Sunday.

That could see youngster Scott Wootton play alongside Jonny Evans in the heart of the defence, with Alex Buttner set to come in for Frenchman Evra.

Winger Ashley Young may also be in the matchday squad against the Portuguese side having returned to training after making positive progress following a knee problem.

Midfield trio Shinji Kagawa, Tom Cleverley and Ryan Giggs are also set to return after being rested for the league win over Stoke as United attempt to extend their perfect record in the competition.

Braga's Ruben Micael and Ruben Amorim will compete for a place in attack alongside main striker Eder.



Helder Barbosa and Marcio Mossoro formed the forward line for their win over Guimaraes in the Portuguese league at the weekend though and manager Jose Peseiro may opt to stick with them instead.

Ferguson: Hazard price was too high

Sir Alex Ferguson believes that Chelsea have paid too much for Eden Hazard this summer after forking out a reported £34 million.



Hazard became a Blues player last month after deciding to make the move to Stamford Bridge from Lille ahead of joining United or Premier League champions Manchester City.



Chelsea have apparently paid just under £35 million for the Belgian playmaker and Fergie has questioned whether he is worth that much.



"There is a borderline in terms of what you would think is a good signing for United," he said.



"I see some values on players, like Hazard for instance. To me it was a lot of money. He's a good player, but £34m?



"What we're finding anyway, the climate for buying these top players - not just the transfer fees, the salaries, agents' fees - is just getting ridiculous now."



The United chief added: "In the Hazard deal, Chelsea paid the agent £6m.



The (Samir) Nasri situation was the same.



"It's all about what you think is value for a player. I am not envious of those deals at all. We placed a value on Hazard which was well below what they were talking about. So if it doesn't work, well we're not worried about that."

Kagawa to start for Man United

Sir Alex Ferguson has confirmed new-boy Shinji Kagawa will start Manchester United's pre-season encounter with Ajax Cape Town on Saturday.



The £17 million arrival from Borussia Dortmund was restricted to a couple of minutes as a substitute in Durban on Wednesday.



Although it was a disappointment for the supporters who had hoped to see Kagawa in action for the first time, Ferguson claimed because the 23-year-old had arrived for training slightly later than his team-mates, he needed additional work in South Africa this week.



However, with a full-house expected at the Green Point Stadium, Ferguson is ready to unleash the Japan midfielder.



Kagawa has already impressed Ferguson during his short time at Manchester United.



"He's been outstanding," said Ferguson.



"His training performances have been very good. He was three or four days behind everyone else, but he'll play tomorrow."



Kagawa is already being compared to Park Ji-sung, the crowd favourite from Korea Republic who has now joined Queens Park Rangers.



A member of the Dortmund side that has won back-to-back German titles, Kagawa is a more accomplished ball player than Park. However, Ferguson revealed they share the same work ethic.



"There are similarities to Ji-sung Park. They're both disciplined, they work hard," said the Scot.



"Also, they are good professionals and excellent to work with.



"There will be no problems with him settling into the club.



"What we identified about Kagawa is exactly what I'm seeing now. The difference now is that our players are realising his qualities.



"He's got quick feet, is two-footed and had a good goal ratio with Dortmund. He's doing very well."

Sir Alex: Title is top priority

Sir Alex Ferguson admits re-establishing Premier League dominance will be Manchester United's top priority in the 2012/13 campaign.



The Red Devils saw the top-flight crown ripped from their grasp last season in thrilling fashion.



Final-day drama saw Manchester City edge out their arch-rivals and end their long wait for league success.



United are already planning their response, with the Red Devils determined to prove that they remain top dogs in England, and Manchester.



Ferguson's men have bounced back from previous title setbacks to reaffirm their authority, and the target for all of those at Old Trafford is to ensure that they are celebrating again next summer.



"It would be special," Ferguson told the club's official website. "If you look back over different periods, you see we recover.



"When Arsenal won the title from us in 1998 we went and won the Treble the next year. We accepted the challenge and did something about it.



"Then Chelsea came along and got off to a flyer in the league for the first two years. We changed our pre-season a little to make sure we got off to quick starts. That allowed us to get the title back.



"That's happened three times in the last 14 or 15 years. Recovery is so important and the same applies this season. There's not any difference.



"It will be special, but not more special than in previous years.



"We want to recover the title. That's our priority No.1 - to win the title back."

Rio suffers groin problem

Sir Alex Ferguson is hoping that defensive duo Rio Ferdinand and Chris Smalling will be fit for next Sunday's trip to Sunderland.



With Jonny Evans already a major doubt for the Stadium of Light encounter, a selection headache at the back loomed when Ferdinand limped off in some discomfort towards the end of the 2-0 win against Swansea.



Ferdinand's central defensive partner Smalling was also being troubled by injury as he completed the game alongside Phil Jones, who moved into the middle after substitute Rafael slotted in at right-back.



"Rio got a bit of a spasm in his groin," revealed Sir Alex . "Chris Smalling has a little groin strain, too. But I don’t think it’s serious. I think they’ll both be available next week."

Young 'understands' after chat

Sir Alex Ferguson has "had a word" with Ashley Young amid diving accusations that have been levelled against the Manchester United winger.



For the last two weekends, Young has received severe criticism for going down far too easily to earn his side penalties.



United legend Bryan Robson has warned the former Aston Villa man that it may come back to haunt him as referees may be reluctant to award him spot-kicks in the future.



And Ferguson has confirmed he has spoken to the winger about the situation.



"I have had a word with Ashley," said Ferguson.



"He understands where we are coming from. Hopefully it makes a difference."



After watching this week's Champions League semi-finals, Ferguson feels we are in an era where anything goes.



"Last week, if the player doesn't bring Ashley down he is going to score," said Ferguson.



"It was a clear goalscoring opportunity.



"He caught him and he did overdo the attempt to get a penalty. I am not sure he tried to get the penalty but he certainly went down quickly.



"But people have reacted because it is Manchester United.



"I watched Real Madrid and Bayern Munich the other night and it was absolutely ridiculous, players were diving and rolling about, nothing like what Young has been accused of.



"Then you see the other night in the Chelsea game, we are in an age where you expect it now."



Ferguson continues to insist such decisions even themselves out. "We didn't get one against Wigan during the week. We didn't scream from the rooftops about it. It happens," he said.



"We got one given against us for Newcastle, we didn't scream about that either.



"You get bad decisions and good ones. Believe me, it does even itself out."

Luck evens itself out - Fergie

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson insists lucky breaks even themselves out over the course of a season.



On Wednesday, Patrick Vieira suggested that United, along with most major clubs in Spain and Italy, benefited from favourable decisions on home soil - although the Frenchman later claimed his comments were taken out of context.



The argument has been reignited following Michael Oliver's failure to award Fulham a last-minute penalty at Old Trafford on Monday for Michael Carrick's clumsy challenge on Danny Murphy.



Ferguson accepts United - who won the game 1-0 - were lucky with that one.



However, he can cite plenty of other instances where his team were wronged.



"From the referee's position, I can see why he didn't give a penalty when Danny Murphy was brought down," he said.



"The ball moved to the angle as Michael Carrick challenged him. From that position, it wasn't clear.



"It was a good claim but City could have had a penalty against them at Stoke for a foul by Gareth Barry.



"Every club gets breaks here and there, you get good ones and bad ones.



"It evens itself out over the season, that will never change."



Ferguson used United's home game against Newcastle in November as an example of a major decision affecting his team, when Rio Ferdinand conceded a penalty for a perfectly fair challenge on Hatem Ben Arfa.



He also has not forgotten how Mario Balotelli escaped a red card for stamping on Scott Parker during Manchester City's win over Tottenham at the Etihad Stadium in January, then scored the match-winning penalty in injury-time.



"We had a terrible decision earlier this season when Newcastle got a penalty and Tottenham could claim the same when Mario Balotelli wasn't sent off and ended up scoring the winning goal," said Ferguson.



"You could go through millions of things like that.



"Maybe smaller clubs feel that (decisions go against them when they play big clubs) but someone said some years ago that we get lots of penalties. It is only averaging out at three a year.



"You can't say that is a lot when you are attacking teams all the time.



"Most managers believe the breaks even themselves out."



Meanwhile, Ferguson confirmed winger Nani would again be missing when United head to Blackburn on Monday.



The Portugal international has missed four games with an ankle injury and was expected to return to training early this week.



"He won't be back until tomorrow and Monday will come too soon," said the United boss.