I Left With Sir Alex's Blessing - Eagles

The 22-year-old left for Burnley in a deal thought to be worth approximately £1.25 million.

The Championship side will be looking to make a fist of a promotion campaign - more realistically via the play-offs - and Eagles, long considered a prospect by the Red Devils, will prove to be one of the most expensive players in the league.

Despite playing a regular part in United's pre-season so far, Eagles' chances of breaking into the first team come the start of the competitive season looked unlikely and he believes the move down a league is a step in the right direction.

He conceded it was difficult to leave the club but, unlike another United winger, was given the manager's blessing upon deciding to leave.

“I spoke to Sir Alex a lot about it because he’s looked after me since I was 14," revealed Eagles. "It’s a big step but it’s a step in the right direction."

Van Der Sar Unconcerned By Foster Threat

With every year that passes it seems Ben Foster's (pictured) stock shoots skyward. Van Der Sar on the other hand, will find his reflexes waning, and the aches increasing, as his years continue to climb.

The Dutch centurion however, is quoted by Setanta Sports that his position as the Red Devil's primary guard remains unthreatened.

"Ben is a good goalkeeper, but the same can be said of myself and Tomasz Kuszczak. We are all working hard to reach the highest level we can, but people tend to be focused on Ben because they relate it to the England situation."

"I don't care who is behind me, I just concentrate on keeping hold of the jersey. This means I have to perform and make sure I am fit and playing at the level everyone wants me to be at."

Edwin Van Der Sar joined the ranks at Old Trafford in 2005 for £2million. He will go down as a Manchester hero due to his Nicolas Anelka penalty save in the Champions League Final last season.

Ferguson Bombshell: If Ronaldo Leaves, So Will I

It has been the transfer soap opera of the summer, and the most explosive episode so far may have just been aired.

With Man Utd publicly insisting that the Portuguese wizard is staying, Real Madrid quietly confident that they can get their man, and Ronaldo himself still remaining silent, Sir Alex Ferguson has moved to drop an absolute bombshell regarding the issue.

Ferguson, who has won more trophies than any other manager in the history of English football, has threatened to quit Manchester United if Ronaldo is sold.

"If Ronaldo leaves, I'm going too," the Scot is quoted as saying by Spanish newspaper Marca.

It is quite an astonishing statement from Fergie, who has been at Man Utd for the last 22 years, winning 10 Premier Leagues, five FA Cups, two Champions Leagues and an Intercontinental Cup, among a plethora of other honours.

Ferguson is well known to being a master when it comes to playing the media, and these comments, if Marca have reported them accurately, may have been intended to pile up the guilt on Ronaldo, and pressure him into staying at Old Trafford.

Van Der Sar: Ronaldo Should Stay

The 37-year-old goalkeeper is of the opinion that playing for United represents a unique opportunity for any player, as it gives rise to the opportunity of competing in global competition.

The Dutchman lauded the stadium and supporters of Manchester United and revealed that the playing staff at the club are tightly-knit.

In addition, Van Der Sar stated that Ronaldo should honour the contract he signed last summer.

Ronaldo has been constantly linked with a move away from the European champions all summer, and has only just stopped short of declaring his intention to leave.

Of the transfer saga, Van Der Sar said: "There have been a lot of things said and it is a very personal situation but we have a great team here, we play in a great stadium, with great fans and we have an opportunity to win more. It is not that the team is going backwards.

"We have other trophies to play for, like the Super Cup and Intercontinental Cup. You don't get the chance to play in those competitions very often because you need to win the Champions League in order to qualify.

"In my opinion, being at Manchester United is a great way to play at the highest level and win trophies with a team that is very closely knitted together.

"Cristiano also has a contract here. Sometimes things change but we have a good squad here without any question."

Giggs Rejected Milan Transfer

Since making his debut for Man Utd way back in 1990, Giggs has gone on to establish himself as a club legend, and one of the greatest ever winger’s in the English game.

The plethora of honours the 34-year-old has picked up include 10 Premier League titles, two Champions Leagues, four FA Cups and one Intercontinental Cup.

However, Giggs could have won just half of his English-based medals had he accepted the chance to join Italian giants AC Milan a decade ago.

"Ten years ago I declined an offer to join Milan,” the Welsh wizard revealed.

“Perhaps one day I will regret not accepting the offer, but at this moment I can say that I am happy to have remained at Man Utd."

These revelations come after former Manchester United star David Beckham also recently divulged that he too came close to signing for the Rossoneri when he left Real Madrid to join LA Galaxy in 2007.

Vidic Happy With African Trip

United played matches in South Africa and Nigeria, seeing out the trip undefeated.

The European champions beat Portsmouth 2-1 in Abuja last Sunday in a dress rehearsal for the Community Shield.

Before that, United had competed in the 'Vodacom Challenge Cup' in South Africa, playing Kaiser Chiefs and Orlando Pirates.

Vidic is pleased with the outcome of the trip and hopes that United can capitalise on their strong pre-season form in the Premier League.

The Serbian said: "We're pleased to have won a few games and kept some clean sheets - it's never too early to pick up good form.

"We had some good matches in South Africa and we're happy with what we did out there. Our fitness is improving all the time.

"We still have another few weeks to train and make sure we're ready for the first game."

Cantona To Cristiano: Don't Be Stupid

Cantona, 42, has already gone on record as saying that he cannot understand why the Portuguese megastar would want to leave Old Trafford, and this time he wasn't holding back any punches.

Cantona said: "He is still young, and so maybe he wants to take on fresh challenges. I can understand if this is the reason why he wants to leave for Real.

"But if he were to leave because of something else, he would be doing something absolutely bloody stupid."

The Frenchman, who spent five glorious years at the club inspiring United to four Premier League titles and two FA Cups before retiring from football in 1997, also took the opportunity to confirm reports that he would love to make an emotional return to Old Trafford as a manager.

"It would be a huge honour for me to become Manchester United's coach - it would be marvellous," he told The Mirror.

Giggs Slams Greedy Agents

Cristiano Ronaldo’s uncertain future at Old Trafford has been the talk of the summer so far, as Real Madrid continue to pursue the Portuguese superstar relentlessly despite United’s reluctance to sell.

The player himself has come in for heavy criticism after insisting that he is being held captive at Old Trafford, following FIFA president Sepp Blatter’s outrageous claim that the 23-year-old was being subjected to “modern slavery”.

Many have branded Ronaldo a shiftless mercenary for the way he has conducted himself since los Merengues came a-knocking, insisting his behaviour demonstrates a complete lack of loyalty.

Giggs is also fed up with the insatiable nature of certain among his footballing brethren, and was quoted in The Sun as saying: “Many players want to make as much money as they can and change teams for ten grand.

“How is that going to make much difference to their lives? Foreign players always have their home somewhere else, so they are going to have their eyes on going back.”

It is well documented that Ronaldo stands to score a hefty pay-raise if he does complete the £70million switch to the Spanish giants, who are reportedly offering wages of over £200,000-per-week.

What is less well known is that the player’s agent, Jorge Mendes, will pocket an incredible £10million if he can push through the transfer.

And Giggs believes it is the questionable motives of the likes of Mendes, rather than the players themselves, that are largely responsible for today’s cash-orientated football scene.

“If you get those players on their own they are good lads,” the Welshman added.

“So a lot of the blame has to go on their advisors and agents who make a lot of money out of these deals and don’t have the interests of the player at heart.”

Ferguson On Chelsea, Ince & Neville

Sir Alex Ferguson belives the coming season's battle for silverware with rivals Chelsea will see the Londoners facing a huge challenge, despite the appointment of World Cupwinning manager Luiz Felipe Scolari.

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has told the latest edition of the club's official magazine, United: "The way I look at it is that Jose Mourinho was a good coach and we had to deal with that.

"He had two league successes over us and beat us in the FA Cup.

"If they achieve that again they'll have to be going some. So they have big challenges themselves."

Ferguson also hailed his former midfielder, Paul Ince, who has succeeded another United old boy in Mark Hughes as manager of Blackburn Rovers.

"He's a great character, Incey. He's not changed one bit. He's still got that bubbly personality and I think he could do quite well.

"The only thing about going to Blackburn is that you hear rumblings of some players wanting to move to another club, or their contracts coming to an end.

"He is going there at a difficult time and they may lose some players. But Incey has a lot of determination about him, so we'll see how he gets on."

United are able to welcome back club captain Gary Neville after a lengthy injury absence, and Ferguson is looking forward to having him available again.

He told the magazine: "Gary is back and he is looking terrific in training. It's amazing and says a lot about the lad and his determination to come back after such a long lay-off. He's been looking great in training so it's terrific to have those options with the back four, we look really strong there this season.

"He must have been gutted missing out on last season's successes but I was pleased because he still played his part, he was always in with the players encouraging and got involved with everyone around the team. He was a terrific influence, even though he wasn't playing matches."