Rooney made his comeback from a hamstring injury as a goalscoring substitute against Fulham on Wednesday and Sir Alex Ferguson intends to find out whether the striker is fit enough to face Inter Milan in the Champions League on Tuesday.

Giggs, Fletcher and Rafeal are expecting a recall to the squad as Sir Alex is looking to keep the line-up fresh for the clash with Inter Milan next Tuesday.


While Edwin van der Sar looking to set a new European record with a 15th consecutive clean sheet. John O’Shea (heel) is a minor doubt.

Record-breaking United goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar has no intention of abandoning a lifelong refusal to start worrying about what his rivals are doing.

The veteran Dutchman kept his 14th consecutive Premier League clean sheet against former club Fulham on Wednesday night.

If he keeps Blackburn out for 89 minutes of tomorrow’s Old Trafford encounter, it would represent the longest barren streak in European top flight history, breaking the record set by former Club Brugge stopper Dany Verlinden in 1990.

While Van der Sar is clearly keen to maintain his staggering run, the 38-year-old is more concerned by adding trophies to his collection.

His focus this weekend will therefore be on Blackburn, not Chelsea’s visit to Aston Villa earlier in the day or Liverpool’s encounter with Manchester City 24 hours later.

“Footballers have to be strong,” he said. “Seeing their rivals win won’t stop their determination.

“That is why we think of ourselves and what we can do to win games and stay top of the league.

“That way, when it comes to the finishing line, hopefully we will have our noses in front of Chelsea and Liverpool, who are now our main rivals for the title.”

Meanwhile, having comeback from a seven-match absence with a hamstring injury by scoring with his first touch against the Cottagers, Wayne Rooney is itching to be involved.

“We have been on an unbelievable run,” he said.

“I have missed seven games and we have won the lot.

“I felt I could have been back a bit sooner, even if the wise decision between the fitness department and myself was to leave it a couple more weeks.

“We are on a big run-in now and I have seen players come back too soon, do it again and be out for another five or six weeks.

“The most important thing was to stop that happening.

“But you do think ‘How am I going to get back into this team?’ It is a dream to be involved. It just gets better with each game.”

Defender Chris Samba is suspended for Blackburn’s match against Manchester United at Old Trafford evening.

The centre-back, who scored the injury-time equaliser against Coventry last weekend which kept Rovers in the FA Cup, has reached five bookings for the season and so must sit out one match.

On-loan right-back Danny Simpson is ineligible to play against his parent club.

Blackburn manager Sam Allardyce does not agree with Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger’s “untouchable” assessment of Manchester United.

However, he does feel this could be the best team ever produced by Sir Alex Ferguson during his long reign at Old Trafford.

United have kept 14 successive clean sheets in the Barclays Premier League and lead Liverpool by five points at the top of the table.

Allardyce takes his side to face United tomorrow as rank outsiders but does not believe the title race is a foregone conclusion.

“They are formidable but not untouchable and somewhere along the line they will drop a point or concede a goal and lose a match,” he said.

“But this is the best form of the season. Many games throughout the early part of the season were a struggle for them but they came through those and that is why they are the best team.

“When they don’t deserve to win they still win and when they are in the mood they can take you apart.”

As well as leading the Premier League, United are in the Carling Cup final and are still in the Champions League and FA Cup.

Allardyce believes more trophies this season will see the current crop of players crowned Ferguson’s best-ever.

“Another double or better will say to everyone in the world that this is the best team Sir Alex has had,” said the Rovers boss.

“Their consistency and capabilities to win trophies at the highest level will prove that is the case.”