LONDON, August 6, 2008 (AFP) - Manchester United defender Patrice Evra and Chelsea groundsman Sam Bethell on Wednesday denied charges levelled against them by the Football Association over their part in the Battle of Stamford Bridge last season.

MANCHESTER, August 6, 2008 (AFP) - Edwin van der Sar has warned Manchester United's rivals that his side can mount a successful defence of their Premier League and Champions League titles.

United go into the new campaign under a cloud after Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo were ruled out through illness and injury respectively.

MANCHESTER, August 5, 2008 (AFP) - Wayne Rooney will miss the start of the Premier League season after contracting a virus during the club's pre-season trip to Nigeria, Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson confirmed on Tuesday.

MADRID, August 5, 2008 (AFP) - Cristiano Ronaldo has refused to return to England for talks with Manchester United coach Sir Alex Ferguson over his desire to join Real Madrid, a Spanish newspaper reported Tuesday.

BLACKBURN, August 4, 2008 (AFP) - Blackburn boss Paul Ince returned to his former club to sign Manchester United defender Danny Simpson on a season-long loan on Monday.

Ince, who spent six years at United, has now made three signings since taking charge, with Simpson following Paul Robinson and Carlos Villanueva into Ewood Park.

LONDON, August 3, 2008 (AFP) - Rio Ferdinand believes that his Manchester United and England team-mate Wayne Rooney will step out of Cristiano Ronaldo's shadow and be the star of Old Trafford this season.

The 22-year-old was forced to take a supporting role last season as the Portuguese winger's 42 goals made him the leading man at Old Trafford.

LONDON, August 3, 2008 (AFP) - Real Madrid's Dutch striker Ruud van Nistelrooy believes that the constant speculation over the future of Cristiano Ronaldo has had an unsettling effect on the team.

Whether Ronaldo will follow Van Nistelrooy's path from Manchester United to the Bernabeu has been an ongoing debate this summer.

MANCHESTER, August 2, 2008 (AFP) - Sir Alex Ferguson admitted youngster Fraizer Campbell is set for a Premier League opportunity following his goal in Ole Gunnar Solsjaer's testimonial on Saturday.

Campbell, whose form could affect United's bid for Dimitar Berbatov, scored the only goal as United sealed a 1-0 win against Espanyol.

MANCHESTER, August 2, 2008 (AFP) - Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's testimonial saw Manchester United beat Espanyol 1-0 on Saturday though the 68,868 crowd saw little in the way of goalmouth action.

Reserve forward Fraizer Campbell got the goal for the European champions against the mid-table Spanish side at Old Trafford.

LONDON, August 2, 2008 (AFP) - Real Madrid coach Bernd Schuster believes the Spanish champions can still win their battle to sign Manchester United winger Cristiano Ronaldo.

Real have made it clear they are willing to pay a world record transfer fee to bring Ronaldo to the Bernabeu, but United manager Sir Alex Ferguson is adamant the Portugal winger won't be sold at any price.