What Sir Alex Ferguson promised Rio Ferdinand early in his Manchester United career

straight to your inbox Copenhagen coach Stale Solbakken says Guillermo Varela is not nasty enough as he prepares to face former club Manchester United in the Europa League quarter-final. Varela became the first United signing after Sir Alex Ferguson retired in the summer of 2013 but did not make his debut until December 2015.

straight to your inboxRio Ferdinand has outlined how impressed he was by Sir Alex Ferguson's use of youngsters in big matches.Ferguson was no stranger to an out-of-the blue team selection during his tenure as Manchester United manager, often throwing young players in at the deep end. One of those occasions saw Darron Gibson start for United in a must-win game against Bayern Munich in the 2009/10 Champions League quarter-finals.

straight to your inboxPaul Scholes believes that Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is following in the footsteps of Sir Alex Ferguson by handing opportunities to young players at Manchester United.Teden Mengi became the eighth academy graduate to make his debut for United this season, the first time that tally of debutants from the youth ranks has been hit since the 1950s.United have a proud history of blooding academy players into the first-team, evidenced by Mason Greenwood's and Marcus Rashford's rises to

straight to your inboxHere are the Manchester United evening headlines for Sunday, August 2.Manchester United legend Wayne Rooney believes that Sir Alex Ferguson got it tactically wrong during both the 2009 and 2011 Champions League finals.The Reds were defeated in both games by Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona, losing 2-0 in 2009 and 3-1 at Wembley two years later.And Rooney, who scored United’s equaliser in the 2011 final, believes the club should have approached both games in a more pragmatic

straight to your inbox Nemanja Vidic has hailed the unseen impact of Edwin van der Sar on his partnership with Rio Ferdinand at the heart of the Manchester United defence. Vidic and Ferdinand struck up an iconic partnership in the United backline under Sir Alex Ferguson, winning five Premier League titles together and making a combined 755 appearances for the club.

straight to your inboxWayne Rooney believes Sir Alex Ferguson's tactics in the 2009 and 2011 Champions League finals were wrong.United went into the 2009 final in Rome as defending champions but were beaten despite having early chances, with goals from Samuel Eto'o and Lionel Messi securing a 2-0 win for Barcelona.

straight to your inbox Nemanja Matic insists Manchester United are aiming to challenge for the Premier League title next season. United finished third in the recent domestic season to qualify for the Champions League after an unbeaten 14-match league run that stretched back to January.

straight to your inboxRio Ferdinand has revealed how both he and Wayne Rooney were proven wrong by two of Sir Alex Ferguson's signings at Manchester United.The two United greats were sceptical when the club announced the arrivals of both Nemanja Vidic and Patrice Evra in January 2006, and early showings in training did little to change their minds.Ferguson looked to strengthen his squad with the acquisition of the defensive duo midway through the season, and it is safe to say Rooney's and

straight to your inbox Manchester United great Sir Alex Ferguson has revealed that Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp rang him in the early hours to tell him that the Merseyside club had won the Premier League title. Klopp guided Liverpool to their first league title in 30 years and has now been awarded the trophy named after the former United boss as he was named LMA manager of the year for the 2019/20 season.

The Big Interview podcast, Ferdinand also opened up on his 'addiction' to winning and the Champions League in particular. Ferdinand won the 2008 Champions League with United, captaining the final that Sir Alex Ferguson's side won via penalties against Chelsea.

United defender also named Michael Carrick as someone he loved playing with under Sir Alex Ferguson, after reflecting on the midfielders he played behind at Old Trafford.Ferdinand, Carrick and Hargreaves were all integral parts of the 2008 Champions League winning side at United, forming a solid foundation on which forwards like Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney thrived.Ferdinand has now told The Big Interview podcast that he'd been excited to see Carrick, Hargreaves and Paul Scholes team up at

Manchester United and England footballer Marcus Rashford is to become the youngest person to receive an honorary degree from The University of Manchester.Rashford, 22, will follow in the footsteps of Manchester United legends Sir Alex Ferguson and Sir Bobby Charlton in earning the accolade from the university, which is being awarded for his campaigning work off the pitch.Last month, he forced a Government U-turn after he wrote an open letter to MPs asking for the reversal of a decision not to