CARRICK BACK IN TRAINING

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Sir Alex Ferguson has suggested there is a chance Nemanja Vidic could leave Manchester United this summer.

Vidic, 28, has been strongly linked with a move to Real Madrid and, following earlier claims the player's partner was keen to move to a warmer climate, recent reports have said the defender is disappointed not to have been offered a payrise this summer.

Asked if he could clear up the speculation, Ferguson said after Wednesday night's friendly with Philadephia Union: "I can't clarify it at all." Pressed further on whether Vidic would be a United player next season, he said: "I believe so."

Vidic has previously insisted he would stay at United, but there have been indications that his stance may have changed.

Ahead of the World Cup, his agent, Paolo Fabbri, said: "We are waiting for Nemanja to tell us what we he wants to do. We are waiting - as it is up to him.

"We have requested some time from United to think about things. Any eventual transfer will take place only after the World Cup finals."

The Manchester Evening News reported last week, though, that his representatives had been ordered not to make any comment.

Just_do_it_lah SG

crazy... selling one of their most profile players... and every time is to Real Madrid...

wondering Alex gets a cut from the sale... lol.

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While the main bulk of the squad are preparing for the new season on tour in North America, a host of first team members are making good progress back at Carrington.

Captain Gary Neville and Antonio Valencia have resumed training, while Michael Owen and Rio Ferdinand are slowly but surely working their way back to full fitness.

“Gary has begun training again after his calf injury and will be ready for the start of the season, while Antonio will be back in full training on Monday,” confirmed the manager.

“Michael Owen is doing some terrific work, but is a bit behind Gary and Antonio and I don’t think he’ll be ready for the start of the season. Rio is probably around six weeks away from playing.”

The boss also gave an update on knee victims Anderson – who suffered ligament damage in February - and Owen Hargreaves, who has had a recurrence of his long-standing tendonities problem.

“Anderson will be back in late September as planned, while Owen Hargreaves will stay in America until he’s ready to come back,” added Sir Alex.

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Michael Carrick has taken part in Manchester United's open training session, just a day after being ruled out for two weeks with an ankle injury.

Sir Alex Ferguson announced on Friday that the England international midfielder would miss the start of the new season after picking up the injury in United's last pre-season match against League of Ireland XI last Wednesday.

But the former West Ham and Tottenham playmaker was in attendance at Old Trafford and was moving freely in training to give the Red Devils fans encouraging news ahead of their Premier League opener against Newcastle.

The da Silva twins - who have been suffering with food poisoning - also took part in training and could be in contention to feature in Sunday's Community Shield clash against Chelsea.

Ahead of Sunday's clash, Ferguson is adamant he will not dip into the transfer market for the sake of it.

The United boss has continually insisted there is no one 'exciting' him in the transfer market and is not tempted to take a plunge in the last three weeks before the window closes.

"I don't see the value in adding to our squad," said Ferguson.

"I am happy with what we already have and I don't see any reason to add to that just because people want me to buy someone.

"Supporters want you to buy players. They like to see a big signing every year. Sometimes the players like to see a big signing.

"But we have to be sensible about it. We look at our own squad and ask what do we need?

"I look at the players everyone says are available and they don't excite me."

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Thousands attend open training

About 10,000 United fans flocked to Old Trafford on Saturday morning to watch Sir Alex's men be put through their paces ahead of Sunday's Community Shield clash at Wembley.

The Manchester United Foundation's annual open training session gives supporters a rare chance to see their heroes practice at close quarters. And this year fans packed the terraces in North Stand tier 1, raising approximately £30,000 for charity.

It was the first opportunity for locals to glimpse new signings Javier Hernandez and Chris Smalling in the flesh, while returning World Cup stars, including Patrice Evra and Wayne Rooney, also took part in the 75-minute session.

Club photographers John and Matt Peters were on hand to capture the action and you can view our image gallery by clicking on the main picture above.

Training squad: Kuszczak, van der Sar; Brown, Evans, Evra, Fabio, Neville, O'Shea, Rafael, Smalling, Vidic; Carrick, Cleverley, Fletcher, Gibson, Giggs, Nani, Park, Scholes, Valencia; Berbatov, Chicharito, Macheda, Owen, Rooney

iceFatboy SG

haha, so confusing...the header of the topic is just mentioned in only few lines of the content...

anyway, I feel SAF is playing a game with capello with declaring Carrick unfit and then playing him.. but he got ruled out of the England Friendly.