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Hargreaves returns as United take on Rams

Owen Hargreaves of Manchester United runs with the ball during the English Premier League match against Fulham at Old Trafford in Manchester, England, on Monday. PHOTO: AFP

England midfielder Owen Hargreaves admits he has no idea whether his return to the Manchester United line-up against Derby County today will herald the start of a prolonged first team run.

Hargreaves was viewed as the missing piece in Sir Alex Ferguson's jigsaw when he joined from Bayern Munich in a £17 million (US$34.7 million) move in the summer.

But the England international's start to life in the Premiership has been disrupted by recurring bouts of tendonitis.

The 26-year-old has only managed eight league starts this season and admits the competition in the United squad makes it difficult to get a consistent run in Ferguson's side.

"The competition in midfield is great. We miss Paul Scholes at the moment, he's such a great player but Anderson has come in and he's really starting to show what he's capable of," Hargreaves said. "We've got plenty of options with Michael Carrick and Darren Fletcher pushing for places. It makes it difficult for the manager, which is a good thing."

"I feel like I've been at the club for years. I've known a lot of the players for a long time through the England set-up and, of course, the national team has trained at the Carrington training ground on numerous occasions and also played at Old Trafford," he said. "So it's always been familiar to me. Being a United player is everything I expected and more. I have been really impressed with the club as an organization, the people, the way everyone has taken to me."

"I've been hugely impressed with the quality of the players, the staff, the fans and also the style of football this team plays," he said. "The only disappointment has been that I'd like to have played more games. Hopefully that will change now."

The Rams' visit to Old Trafford has to be the biggest mismatch of the weekend in the Premiership.

Bottom-club Derby have won just once in the Premiership all season, while United have picked up 22 points from a possible 24 in their eight games at Old Trafford.

Paul Jewell started work at Pride Park last week and suffered a 1-0 defeat at fellow strugglers Sunderland in his first match in charge.

Jewell insists the result at Old Trafford will do little to determine Derby's destiny.

"If we get anything out of the game it's a bonus, so in a way the pressure is off because nobody expects us to get anything from it," Jewell said.

Derby have also had to cope with illness sweeping through their squad this week. Defender Claude Davis and winger Gary Teale have been the worst affected but both players trained on Thursday.
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