Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson admits winning the Champions League again is crucial for this season.

"Our signings this summer of Owen Hargreaves, Nani and Anderson - and hopefully Carlos Tevez - give us a really strong squad that will allow us to cope with competing in the Premier League, the Champions League and, of course, the FA Cup and Carling Cup," he said.

"Last year we had a bad run of injuries on the final part of the season that left us short to handle all the competitions we were in. In the circumstances we did exceptionally well to win the league title, but I was left with the feeling that with just a few more players we might have reached the European Cup final and perhaps won the FA Cup.

"My job is to keep Manchester United at the forefront of the game and adding these four new players will certainly strengthen us, especially in the Champions League.

"We have faltered in three European semi-finals now and a club of our stature should be doing better. Our new players will hopefully enable us to get over this final hurdle. It all adds up to one hell of a squad."