Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson has banned his youth players from wearing coloured boots.

While first-team stars such as Wayne Rooney, Dimitar Berbatov and Ryan Giggs are free to wear what they like in order to keep up with the demands of their sponsors, Ferguson has decreed that youth team and academy players must wear black.

An Old Trafford source told the Daily Mail: "Sir Alex doesn't like young players to get ahead of themselves. He thinks their feet should be on the ground."

United are also watchful on the use of boots with 'bladed' soles as they feel they can cause head injuries.