O'Shea highlights Ron influence

After scooping virtually all the player of the year awards on offer last term, Ronaldo is clearly a danger man for the Barclays Premier League champions, however, the 22-year-old has been handed another important role by the Red Devils this summer; unofficial chaperone to fellow Portuguese speakers Nani and Anderson.

O'Shea believes Ronaldo's presence can make the transition smooth for the duo, saying: "You are talking about a new language, a new area, new friends and new team-mates. It is bound to take a while to adjust. You saw that with Ronaldo himself a few years ago. He made a good start at United but just look at the type of player he is now."

He added: "Because of that experience and the fact he is from Portugal, I think having Cristiano around is going to be a massive help in Nani and Anderson settling in."

With Owen Hargreaves not yet fully recovered from the tendinitis problem which has plagued him throughout pre-season, O'Shea is set to find himself in the midfield holding role as United open their title defence against Reading on Sunday.

There may have been a sense of relief during the summer after the Red Devils ended their four-year title drought. But there is no way boss Sir Alex Ferguson will allow complacency to creep in. And, after making a rapid start 12 months ago to burn off all their challengers, O'Shea knows what the secret of success this season is going to be.

"To retain our title we need to get off to a positive start," he said. "That is what we did last year. Hopefully, we can do it again."

Ferguson's major selection dilemma appears to centre around either giving Nani a start or trusting the ability of Paul Scholes, who came through a full 90-minute work-out at Dunfermline on Wednesday, his first outing since returning from the Far East for a minor knee operation.

Either way, United will be expected to collect maximum points as they look to repel the threat of major rivals Chelsea, plus big-spending Liverpool and a few others O'Shea thinks turn out to be contenders.

"The challenge will not just come from Chelsea," he said. "We have seen the way other teams have strengthened their squads, so I expect there will be four or five challengers. The competition will be intense, so we know we must perform."