Hargreaves ready for United return

Alex Ferguson has declared Owen Hargreaves fit and ready to start against Middlesbrough at Old Trafford tomorrow.

The England international has been restricted to just three appearances since his £18m move from Bayern Munich after failing to shrug off a knee problem.

However, an injection to cure swelling caused by tendonitis appears to have worked and the 26-year-old is now in line to face Boro, when victory for the Red Devils will take them back to the Premier League summit.

“Owen is fit to start tomorrow,” said Ferguson.

“It’s been frustrating for him, missing games is not what he came here for. He’s come here for a big fee and he must be a bit disappointed with the way things have gone.

“But it is a long season and he is back now which is terrific news for us because it gives us a better chance of doing well.”

Hargreaves’ return is particularly timely given Paul Scholes will miss tomorrow’s game.

The former England star hurt his knee in training the day before this week’s Champions League win over Dynamo Kiev and a scan to assess the problem has proved inconclusive.

“The first scan did not show the problem clearly so we are sending him to see a specialist on Monday to try and find out what the damage is and how we deal with it,” said Ferguson.

“Hopefully it is not going to be a long one.”

Ferguson revealed that Gary Neville and Michael Carrick could both be fit for the crunch showdown with Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium on November 3.

Neville has not played at all this season with calf and thigh problems, while Carrick is currently nursing a dislocated elbow sustained in the victory over Roma at Old Trafford earlier this month.

Ferguson said: “Neville has been doing a lot of training. He just needs a game which we are trying to arrange for him. He should be fit in seven days.

“Michael Carrick goes for a scan on Monday. If he gets the all-clear to start training, he will be available for Arsenal.”

Louis Saha is again unlikely to figure against Boro but Patrice Evra should be involved despite pulling out of the Kiev win with a calf strain sustained in the warm-up.

Squad (from): Van der Sar, Kuszczak, Brown, Ferdinand, Vidic, Pique, O’Shea, Evra, Fletcher, Ronaldo, Hargreaves, Anderson, Nani, Giggs, Rooney, Tevez, Eagles, Simpson.