THE THREE AMIGOS

Team selection and player availability is a thorny subject in Manchester, especially in the light of a recent announcement from Old Trafford that misled reporters into believing Quinton Fortune would play against Arsenal two weeks ago despite having broken his leg six days earlier. But, petty media infighting aside, team selection is an issue that is presenting Sir Alex Ferguson with, if not sleepless nights, some considerable juggling problems. Welcome ones, no doubt.

His Manchester United team have won eight in a row - the last five without conceding a goal - and they travel to Blackburn Rovers this afternoon with David Beckham and Roy Keane relegated to the role of substitutes. Rio Ferdinand, all £30 million worth of him, is only days away from full fitness and can also expect to warm the bench before returning to first-team duty.

'I don't know how you would pick our best team,' said Ferguson. 'Put it this way: I'd like the chance to have them all back, and that will probably be the last game of the season, the Cup final or European Cup final, when they'll all be fit. You can bet your life that when you get to the big games they are all fit.

'It's difficult to say what my best team is; the goalposts have changed a little bit. My best team in August is obviously different to my best team now. I bought Rio Ferdinand, for a start. He had never had any injuries, now he's had three. Rio has been unlucky with injuries, it has been stop-start with him, but hopefully that is his injuries over with and he can go and enjoy himself now.

His fitness is very good, no question about that - he just needs that bit of luck.

'He is joining in training this weekend after doing all his work with the physios. What you will find is I will make changes, either against Middlesbrough, or Sunderland [in the Premiership] or Portsmouth in the Cup.

'Those players will need a game and with the number of matches this time of year you need to make changes anyway. We will have played 10 games in December and that's a lot of football.

We need to start using the pool now.' Keane, Beckham, and Ferdinand merely part of 'the pool'.

That statement, more than pure statistics, gives an indication of how rapidly and dramatically United have climbed out of their early-season funk.

Certainly, in the case of Keane's central midfield positions, the fact that Fortune and, since the South African's injury, Phil Neville have filled in so well is as surprising as any other facet of United's unpredictable season. Similarly, a much-maligned defence has been resuscitated by the fit-again Wes Brown partnering converted full-back Mikael Silvestre in the heart of the back
four.

'Quinton Fortune was instrumental in how we changed the midfield, he did a fantastic job for us,' said Ferguson. 'Now Phil Neville has filled in and done a fantastic job, too. You're always tempted to use Mikael at left-back because he's got that left foot, that drive, but he can play centre-half no problem and he's got better. That's a problem when Rio is back.

What do you do? What would you do?'

Ferguson asking journalists their opinion? This really must be a conundrum for him.