Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson admits he enjoys the Carling Cup.

United's recent record of three finals and a semi-final in the past seven years has underlined they always take it seriously regardless of the team they put out.

Ferguson said: "I like the Carling Cup, it's a change of scene with different opposition, different managers, different players. It's a refreshing competition that has served us well over the years.

"Some regard it as the poor relation of the cup competitions but I don't knock it because it was a trophy we won to keep us in touch with the honours board before we were able to crack the championship.

"It has also served us well in being a valuable development aid for our younger players.

"It has more than proved its worth by enabling me to give senior pitch-time to players who are perhaps not quite ready for full action in the Premier League.

"We have won two finals at Wembley in recent years with young players, which is good going, and it has become an important tournament for us in terms of giving the youngsters an introduction into winning and having an understanding of the progress they are making."