Sunday too soon for Reds duo

Thigh injuries have ruled Owen Hargreaves and Gary Neville out of Sunday's clash with Chelsea at Old Trafford.

The pair have both trained this week, but Sir Alex Ferguson expects them to return either side of next Wednesday's Carling Cup tie with Coventry City.

"Owen Hargreaves is in training and improving all the time, he's in contention for Coventry," Sir Alex told his pre-match press conference.

"Gary Neville has joined first team training, but the Coventry game will be too early for him. We'll be looking at 7-10 days. For Sunday's game against Chelsea we'll be relying mainly on Wednesday's squad."

No new injuries were collected in United's win over Sporting Lisbon, giving Sir Alex a bulging squad for the visit of the Blues, who face their first game since the departure of manager Jose Mourinho.