He is easily the best defensive midfielder one can find in England. But Hargreaves is determined to put back the disappointment of not being selected for World Cup by proving his fitness ahead of the Reds’ tour of the US and Canada.

United’s warm up matches will be critical for midfielder Hargreaves, who has yet to play a tour match with the Reds since signing from Bayern Munich in 2007.

The 29-year-old travelled to Asia three years ago as United’s £18m newcomer but was unable to play in any of the matches due to the onset of the knee tendonitis that has impacted so badly on his Old Trafford career.

He didn’t fly out for the 2008 tour of South Africa because he was suffering the same knee problems. And 12 months ago when United’s squad went to Asia again he was in rehab following his two career-saving knee operations in the US.

Hargreaves managed only seconds of first team action at the end of last season against Sunderland following his 18 months of injury trauma. But he’s been training this summer and is preparing for his first proper pre-season with the Reds ahead of a crucial campaign that will prove he is finally over his injury problems.

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Sir Alex Ferguson believes Owen Hargreaves' confidence has suffered as a result of his long injury lay-off.

The Manchester United midfielder, who was left out of Fabio Capello's 30-man provisional World Cup squad, has played only 35 seconds for his club since returning from 20 months out with chronic tendinitis in his knees earlier this month.

That brief comeback came during the United's penultimate game of the season against Sunderland, but England international Hargreaves was not included for the final fixture at home to Stoke.

And manager Ferguson believes the former Bayern Munich player must overcome a mental barrier before he can get back to playing at his best ability.

"He's had a tough time," Ferguson said in The Times. "Now it's that mental step.

"He's enthusiastic about it but he needs that big step forward to playing a game."

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Manchester United midfielder Owen Hargreaves could return to the squad after a 19-month layoff Saturday against Chelsea — the last team he faced before being sidelined by knee problems.

United manager Sir Alex Ferguson said Friday the Calgary-born Hargreaves or defender John O'Shea, who has been out since November, could be among the substitutes at Old Trafford.

The player who is left out will likely make the bench Wednesday when United looks to overturn a 2-1 deficit against Bayern Munich in the Champions League quarter-finals.

Hargreaves, 29, has had surgery on both knees to treat persistent tendinitis since he last played for United in September 2008.

After playing 45 minutes of a reserve-team match last month, the former Bayern Munich midfielder resumed training with the first team.

O'Shea has been out since injuring his leg in Ireland's World Cup playoff loss against France in November.

"John O'Shea and Owen Hargreaves have trained very well with the first team," Ferguson said. "They are not far away and I may use one of them as substitute tomorrow and the other Wednesday.

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has revealed that Owen Hargreaves is fit enough to take the field for the Red Devils after being ruled out of his comeback for the club's reserve side this week.

Hargreaves was set to return after almost 18 months out following surgery on both knees in a game against Manchester City reserves on Thursday evening. However, Ferguson confirmed on Friday that the Canadian-born England star missed the game because of a scheduled appointment with a specialist.

"Owen went to see a specialist yesterday (Thursday)," the United said according to the Daily Mail. "There is nothing wrong and the idea is for him to play in the next game. He has to play in the next game because he is ready to play."

Sir Alex Ferguson expects Owen Hargreaves to be making his first-team return in three weeks.

The Manchester United midfielder returned to Carrington last month after spending a year in the United States recovering from ground-breaking surgery on both knees to combat a long-standing tendinitis problem.

"He should be back in the first-team level in three weeks from now, easily," said Ferguson.

"Owen is doing a lot of good work now.

"He is making great progress, which we are very pleased about.

"It is not a thing you have to rush because he has been out a year.

"We have to monitor it a bit more closely but he is giving us good signs."

In theory that would give Hargreaves a chance of being fit for the eagerly-awaited encounter with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on November 8.

It would seem unlikely Ferguson would pitch the former Bayern Munich star into such a high-profile occasion, so an outing immediately after the international break that follows is far more likely, particularly as United should have booked their place in the Champions League knock-out stages by then.

Owen Hargreaves has claimed he is not finished with football and the Manchester United ace has insisted he can play on.

The injury-prone England midfielder, who has made two league appearances this season, was not expected to be back in action until January 2010 after undergoing knee surgery last November.

But Hargreaves, who has made only 25 starts in two years since his big money move from Bayern Munich, has affirmed that he could be back playing for United in October.

The 28-year-old said: “I’m going to come back stronger and hopefully add a couple of years to my career.

“It’s been so frustrating. As an athlete and being so competitive, it’s hard to watch when you normally would be out there.”

In his tenure at Manchester United Sir Alex Ferguson has built one of the best football clubs in the world. Ups and downs occurred along the way but under Sir Alex the good far outweighs the bad. United look poised for another league title and are in the hunt for the Champions League title. This looks to be another good year for the Red Devils. Sir Alex's problem is going to be trying to meet his own lofty standards next season.

The season is not yet complete but rumours abound as to which of United's key players are going to return next season. Tevez wants more first team football, Ronaldo looks poised to join Real Madrid, and Berbatov is an enigma at best. If all three of these players move on then Sir Alex's judge of talent will be tested.

The wild card in the United midfield will be Owen Hargreaves. If Sir Alex can wave his magic wand and get a full season out of Hargreaves at his best then things get much easier. This scenario is very unlikely, therefore, Ferguson will have to buy at least one quality central midfielder. Once again, with the debt United has amassed, will the money be available?

Since it is unlikely that Ferguson will have the funds necessary to buy enough high profile players to fill out the squad as he would prefer, this coming summer transfer window will be a showcase for his scouting team and Sir Alex's eye for talent. The United squad is delicately poised at the moment. The players that come in will have to be able to hit the ground running and the players who had sub par seasons will have to turn things around if United is to maintain it's current dominance. If the transfers start slow and players like Nani and Anderson don't step up and play consistently well, United could find themselves fighting the likes of Everton to stay in the "top four".

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