Big Guns Set for Moss Rose Showdown

Return to Action?
By Chris O'Brien
July 30 2006

Wayne Rooney, Edwin Van Der Sar and Rio Ferdinand are all set for action as United travel to Macclesfield for a Monday night friendly. Sir Alex Ferguson is ready to bring out his World Cup 'big guns' with the start of the Premiership season only three weeks away.

Sir Alex Ferguson has confirmed that a number of the club's household names will be in action as the Red Devils travel to Macclesfield for a pre-season friendly on Monday night.

The match had been billed as a reserve-team affair, but the likes of Wayne Rooney, Rio Ferdinand and Edwin Van Der Sar will all be involved following their participation in the World Cup. The United boss has been cautious to bring those who played in Germany back to action too soon, and named a very inexperienced line-up as the Red Devils lost 2-1 at Preston on Saturday. However, this looks set to change ahead of next week's Amsterdam Tournament as the League Cup winners head to Moss Rose.

The game promises to be a timely financial boost for League Two Macclesfield. The club were slapped with a £300,000 fine related to offences regarding the construction of their new stand, and the penalty from the Football Association has threatened the very existence of the club. This friendly will provide a huge financial boost for the Cheshire club and also give some of United's bigger names a vital work-out ahead of the new Premiership season.