United must get flying start: Giggs

RYAN GIGGS has emphasised the need to get off to a fast start if Manchester United are to stand any chance of landing a ninth Premiership title.

Giggs is one of the few high-profile members in an 18-man United squad, shorn of all its World Cup stars, that will touch down in Durban today for the start of a three-match South African tour.

As a member of all eight previous Red Devils title-winning sides under Alex Ferguson, Giggs knows better than anyone the demands required of serial trophy-winners.

And, after seeing first Arsenal, then latterly Chelsea establish healthy early leads which United were then unable to haul back, the Welshman is anxious not to suffer a similar fate for a fourth season on the trot.

“We did not get off to the best of starts last season and it cost us,” Giggs said.

“We must start well this season because we cannot be playing catch up to the likes of Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool again.”

Sadly for Giggs, the prospects for the kind of flying start he demands are not good. The failure to bring in any new faces during the close season so far is cause for concern on its own.

Throw in the continuing uncertainty surrounding Cristiano Ronaldo — who is apparently still trying to work out whether it is safe to head back to England — and the impending departure of Ruud van Nistelrooy and there are not too many obvious signs for optimism, even if Gabriel Heinze’s re-stated desire to stay at Old Trafford in the wake of interest from Real Madrid is welcome news.

With talks likely to continue over the futures of both Ronaldo and Van Nistelrooy, chief executive David Gill can certainly expect to have his holiday disrupted next week, when Michael Carrick is finally expected to head to the north-west from Spurs.

Polish keeper Tomasz Kuszczak is also due to leave West Brom for United at some point in the near future.

But those two new faces alone will not convince many outsiders that United will be capable of mounting a serious threat to a Chelsea squad strengthened by the introduction of two undisputed world class talents in Michael Ballack and Andriy Shevchenko, even if Giggs remains optimistic.

Despite the absence of Wayne Rooney, Rio Ferdinand, Ronaldo and the rest, there are still 10 full internationals in the United party, including forgotten man Liam Miller and China’s Dong Fangzhou, who has briefly been welcomed back into the Red Devils fold from his extended loan spell at Royal Antwerp.

A clutch of promising youngsters are also on the trip, including Giuseppe Rossi and goalkeeper Ben Foster but not Gerard Pique, who is competing for Spain in the UEFA Under-19s tournament.

Meanwhile, United assistant manager Carlos Queiroz has “no doubt” that Ronaldo will remain with the club. The Portugal winger has been quoted as saying he is considering a move to Real Madrid in the wake of his antics in the World Cup quarter-final against England, where he appeared to be involved in getting club-mate Wayne Rooney sent off.

But Queiroz insists his 21-year-old compatriot is going nowhere. “Is Cristiano staying? No doubt. Everybody knows during this period of the season there is some speculation. But we keep cool. Those players (Ronaldo and defender Gabriel Heinze) are part of our family,” he said.

Manchester United tour squad: Foster, Steele, Bardsley, O’Shea, Simpson, Brown, Evans, Evra, D Jones, Fletcher, Richardson, Eagles, Miller, Scholes, Giggs, Rossi, Solskjaer, Dong.