Key man: Roy Keane
Sir Alex Ferguson’s captain is so good — he can pass, tackle, head and shoot with impunity — that many Republic of Ireland fans place him in the genius category. Yet he self-destructed this summer, behaving like a petulant child and being sent home by Mick McCarthy, Ireland’s manager. A complex, mercurial character, Keane claims Ferguson is the man he most respects in football. United fans will trust he exorcises his summer demons at the expense of Premiership opponents

Coach: Sir Alex Ferguson
He may have turned 60 but Sir Alex changed his mind about retirement when the prospect stared him in the face last season. Ferguson’s critics began muttering that he might be outstaying his welcome, but nothing would please him more than to prove them wrong. Might not call it a day until the European Cup has been won again

Full squad
Goalkeepers 1 Fabien Barthez 13 Roy Carroll, Luke Steele	Midfielders 4 Juan Veron 7 David Beckham 8 Nicky Butt 15 Luke Chadwick 16 Roy Keane 18 Paul Scholes 25 Quinton Fortune 28 Michael Stewart 31 Darren Fletcher 32 Bojan Djordjic 34 Lee Roche
Defenders 2 Gary Neville 5 Laurent Blanc 3 Phillip Neville 14 David May 24 Wes Brown 27 Mikael Silvestre 30 John O’Shea, 6 Rio Ferdinand, 28 Kirk Hilton	Forwards 10 Ruud van Nistelrooy 11 Ryan Giggs 20 Ole Gunnar Solskjaer 21 Diego Forlan 36 Jimmy Davis 37 Danny Webber 40 Daniel Nardiello

Strongest XI

Nationalities
England (15) France (3), Scotland (2), Ireland (2), Uruguay (1), Norway (1), Wales (1), Holland (1), Sweden (1), South Africa (1), Argentina (1), Northern Ireland (1). Total 30

Players in
Luke Steele, Rio Ferdinand

Players out
Denis Irwin, Ronny Johnsen, Raimond van der Gouw, Ronnie Wallwork, Paul Rachubka, Dwight Yorke

Instant expert
Ground Old Trafford, Manchester M16 0RA
Telephone 0161 868 8000
Capacity 68,217
Shirt sponsor Vodafone
Ticket office 0870 442 1994
Can I get a ticket? Season ticket holders and members receive priority
How to get there Altrincham line of Metrolink to Old Trafford cricket ground, then it is a five-minute walk
Club shop 0161 868 7000

New boy: Rio Ferdinand
Threatening to eclipse Del Boy and Rodney as one of Peckham’s most famous sons. Already the Premiership’s most expensive player, the 23-year-old’s £29.1m move from Leeds has made him almost as unpopular as Eric Cantona in west Yorkshire

Money talk
Top earners Keane £72,000 Beckham £70,000 Ferdinand £70,000

Total wage bill £49.97m
Not surprisingly, the Reds' wage bill and their turnover (£129.5m) are both the Premiership's highest. Their wages amount to just 38.6% of turnover

Where are they now?
Norman Whiteside His career was cut short by injury and he trained as a physiotherapist. Now a fully-qualified podiatrist