End of September for Rio return

Sir Alex Ferguson has revealed he expects Rio Ferdinand to be back in action by the end of September.

Ferdinand suffered medial ligament damage on the first day of World Cup training in South Africa following a freak accident involving Emile Heskey.

There were initial suggestions from Manchester United that the 31-year-old would be back for the new season, but the United boss said: "We are still thinking the end of September for Rio."

He added: "It was a medial ligament problem rather than a cruciate, so the recovery time is exactly what we thought.

"It was a freak. It is nothing to do with his back. We just had to treat it the proper way. These things are never easy."