Sir Alex Ferguson will put his concerns about Cristiano Ronaldo's future plans to one side when Manchester United kick-start their preparations for the coming campaign with a friendly against the manager's old club Aberdeen this weekend.

United will visit the Scottish Premier League side just 52 days after the dramatic penalty shoot-out victory over Chelsea in Moscow that completed a Champions League and Premier League double.

The euphoria that followed the club's third European Cup triumph, however, has quickly evaporated in the wake of Real Madrid's relentless pursuit of Ronaldo and the player's failure to pledge his long term loyalty to Old Trafford.

With Ferguson also having to contend with the prospect of losing his number two Carlos Queiroz — the man credited with exerting a major influence over United's tactics and of acting as a father figure to Ronaldo — to Portugal, the post-Moscow honeymoon is well and truly over.

Against such a background Ferguson is entitled to feel relieved at the opportunity to get minds focused back on matters on the pitch and the prospect of a return to Pittodrie will ensure the Scot is surrounded by friends this weekend.

Ferguson returns to his former club 25 years after guiding an unfancied Aberdeen side to an unforgettable victory over Real Madrid in the final of the European Cup Winners Cup and the fixture has been arranged as an anniversary testimonial for the members of that team.

Indeed, it was Ferguson's outstanding achievement in transforming the fortunes of the unfashionable North East Scotland club that persuaded Old Trafford officials to install him as United manager in November 1986.

But whilst the manager will undoubtedly revel in the nostalgia generated by the occasion, his thoughts will already be focused on his side's twin title defence that will begin in earnest with the opening-day league clash with Newcastle United on August 16.

Ferguson will travel north without any of the players who appeared in the recent Euro 2008 finals, including Ronaldo who will be sidelined for six weeks anyway following surgery on an ankle.

England's failure to qualify for the the competition in Austria and Switzerland means the likes of Wayne Rooney, Rio Ferdinand, Owen Hargreaves, Wes Brown and Michael Carrick should all take their first steps back after the close season lay-off.

That in itself will provide Ferguson with a welcome boost and ensure that the core of his team go into the new season on the back of fresh from a summer of relative inactivity.

But the manager knows his main priority is to see off Madrid's advances towards Ronaldo and convince last season's 42-goal leading scorer his immediate future remains in the English Premier League.

AFP