Sir Alex Ferguson has defended Manchester United's mid-season trip to Saudi Arabia.
United chief happy with trip
Sir Alex Ferguson has defended Manchester United's mid-season trip to Saudi Arabia.
The Red Devils are currently in the Middle East and will play against Al Hilal on Monday as part of Sami Al Jaber's testimonial.
However, United have been criticised for the break in some quarters, who say it is just a money-making move.
But Ferguson insists the warm climate is of major benefit to his players despite the fact they face Tottenham next weekend - just a matter of days after they return.
Warm weather
"We will have two good training sessions out here on Wednesday and Thursday in good, warm conditions, so that will definitely be an advantage to us before we go back to Manchester and we have made a decision to come out here which we hope will prove right," said Ferguson.
"We have gone away before in mid-season and it has worked well for us. We went to Dubai a couple of years ago and we won the FA Cup at the end of that season.
"Obviously, if we go back home and get a bad result, then people will say that we shouldn't have come here, but I'm sure that being here won't do us any harm at all.
"We are delighted to be here and I just hope that the sun gets even warmer over the next few days! We get back to Manchester on Thursday, so that will give us three days to prepare for the Spurs on the Sunday.
"It's a terrific tie for us and hopefully this trip will help us."
Only injured trio Gary Neville, Paul Scholes and Louis Saha have been left at home as Ferguson confirmed he would be using his best XI in the match.
"All of the players will play some part and I will start with my strongest team, so the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney and Carlos Tevez will all be involved," he said.
"We have brought 21 players with us, though, so it's a chance for the likes of Darren Fletcher and John O'Shea to get some time on the pitch and we have also brought a young player called Danny Welbeck."
Tipped for success
Ferguson is tipping 17-year-old forward Welbeck to have a major impact in the near future.
"We think he has a real chance and this is his first chance with the first-team, so it's an important game for him," said Ferguson.
"But we hope that people will look back on this game in years to come as the day that he made his debut."
