Veron plot thickens

Juan Sebastian Veron is expected to face Juventus tonight with the world still guessing whether it will be his last game for Manchester United.

What appeared to be a clear picture pointing the Argentine in the direction of Chelsea has just become completely confused over the past 24 hours, with Alex Ferguson claiming he wanted the midfielder to stay and the player’s agent insisting Veron would be happy to.

It means that rather than winging across the Atlantic along with the injured Gary Neville, the 28-year-old will line up for United in the Giants Stadium probably as puzzled as everybody else.

At the bottom of the riddle appears to be the Old Trafford outfit’s failure to land Ronaldinho from Paris St Germain.

If the Brazilian had signed, Veron would almost certainly have been surplus to requirements and was probably told as much a month ago when Chelsea’s interest in him first emerged.

However, the subsequent collapse of that transfer leaves Ferguson acutely aware that his playmaking options in midfield would be rendered bare if Veron was to depart, leaving the United boss desperately hoping he will stay.

Meanwhile, as the player was out training in readiness for tonight’s encounter, his agent Fernando Hildago claimed Veron would be content to stay at United or join Chelsea, providing the Londoners were able to match his estimated £90,000 (€120,000)-a-week wage demands.

“Chelsea recently made an offer to Manchester United and when it was put to us we were willing to accept it, providing the personal terms were what we requested,” said Hildago.

“Manchester United still have the last word and both clubs still have to agree to the transfer but Seba would be equally happy to remain in Manchester.”

If Ferguson is to be believed, that is exactly what will happen.

“Seba is a terrific player and I want him to stay,” said the United boss.

“He is a mature man, very experienced and he knows what he wants. If there was a situation arising I’m sure he would talk to me but my impression was that he had settled down, everything had gone quiet and there was no problem.

“Seba is a marvellous player and he is contracted to us. It is going to be difficult for a deal to be done today. He will be playing for us.”

Just as Ronaldinho’s snub managed to take the headlines away from United’s initial arrival in the States almost a fortnight ago, so the continued speculation over Veron’s future threatens to overshadow tonight’s sell-out clash, which promises to be the highlight of their four-game tour.

With successive wins over Celtic and Club America behind them, United will face their old rivals in confident mood, even though their defensive resources have been stretched by the loss of Neville, who will be out for three weeks after suffering a torn hamstring in the opening game.

Mikael Silvestre has only just started his pre-season work in England, so either Mark Lynch or Danny Pugh will start this evening, unless Ferguson perseveres with his experiment of playing Quinton Fortune at full-back.

Paul Scholes will definitely play, with skipper Roy Keane likely to join him, both men recovering from minor niggles which saw them miss the Club America encounter.

As Serie A title winners and Champions League runners-up, Juve could claim to have had a better season last term, although they were beaten home and away by United during the second group stage of Europe’s premier club competition.

And, as Ferguson acknowledged, pre-season friendly or not, neither side will want to concede any psychological points knowing their paths could meet again in the Champions League at some stage over the next nine months.

“There is more to this game purely because of the number of times we have played against Juventus in European competition,” he admitted.

“When we first went into Europe we used them as a barometer and we have always had great respect for them.

“There is a familiarity about the two teams and there is not a lot to hide. It should be a good game and I am looking forward to it.”