Neville returns for United

Gary Neville returns to the Manchester United squad for the first time in a year for the Premier League match at Middlesbrough on Sunday.

The club captain has recovered from a long-standing ankle problem and played 90 minutes for the reserves on Monday against Newcastle.

With Mikael Silvestre also fit, United have good cover for defender Nemanja Vidic, who is out for two to three weeks with a knee injury. Nani (thigh), Darren Fletcher (knee) and Louis Saha (hamstring) remain sidelined through injury.

Provisional squad: Van der Sar, Neville, Brown, Ferdinand, Silvestre, Evra, O’Shea, Ronaldo, Scholes, Anderson, Hargreaves, Carrick, Giggs, Park, Rooney, Tevez, Kuszczak, Foster, Pique, Welbeck.