Ferguson:
"Wayne has been in my ear wanting to play. He's been saying, 'I want to play, I want to be captain, I want to take the penalties, the corners, the free-kicks, the goal-kicks, the lot'.
"I'm going to play the younger ones, but also players like Anderson, Nani, and maybe John O'Shea.
"But the younger ones like Gerard Pique, Jonny Evans, Danny Simpson, Phil Bardsley, Chris Eagles, Lee Martin, Dong Fangzhuo, Fraizer Campbell and Tomasz Kuszczak - they'll all be involved.
"This is a really important night for these players. They all want regular first-team football and that is not easy for me to manage.
"I'm trying to get them games in the Premier League and in Europe, too, but the Coventry game is a great opportunity for them. You have to use your squad throughout the course of the season and I'll be doing that when the time is right.
"At the moment they might not see that but it will happen and I know they will not let us down.
"A lot of these players have already shown great improvement. Eagles has been sensational in training and the games he has played in. Evans and Pique have also been excellent, as has Simpson.
"There's real promise there and that is what we want to see against Coventry. We want them to play with the kind of commitment they see from the first-team players every week.
"I've been reading Bobby's [Charlton] autobiography and he speaks a lot about the early years here. What comes across strongly is the number of times he had to say to himself, 'Believe in yourself Bobby, you'll get your chance'.
"I didn't realise he was 19 before he made his first appearance for the club. He was being kept out of the team time and time again by more experienced players.
"It's the same with these young lads. They have to keep believing in themselves, and when the chance comes, take it. And they will get chances."
On Iain Dowie:
"He's doing a good job, Iain. I watched them on Saturday against Ipswich. They lost three goals in the first half but they looked the better side to me. I think Coventry will have a real go. It will be a fantastic atmosphere, which I think will help them, with 10,000 of their fans here. It will feel like a real cup tie."
Iain Dowie [Coventry manager]:
"We'll have a system and a plan to work hard but we'll go there and play, with attacking intent. We'll commit players forward when we're in possession: you cannot afford to sit behind the ball with Man United because eventually they'll rip you apart - Carrick or Scholes will pick a pass to open you up. We have got 11-and-a-half thousand fans going. They deserve a glimmer of hope and we want to make sure they have something to cheer about."
Danny Simpson hopes fo a place tonight:
"It's four weeks now and I have been doing a lot of fitness work, so hopefully, I can show the manager I am okay. [hernia op]
"I have never played at Old Trafford, so to have the opportunity of making my United debut there is a really big thing."
More:
"A young lad can't ask for any more than facing someone like that. [Ronaldo in training]
"You have to be on your game every time you have a training session otherwise it turns into a nightmare.
"It's horrible when he runs at you but if you do well against him it is a great confidence booster.
"It is also fantastic for your concentration levels. If you can do a decent job against him every day then you can do a decent job against anyone."
BBC:
Manchester United are likely to pack their squad with youngsters as usual in the early rounds of the Carling Cup.
Northern Ireland defender Jonny Evans is set for his debut, but Wayne Rooney and Louis Saha could feature, as may fit-again Owen Hargreaves (thigh).
Coventry will field Andy Marshall in goal instead of Dimi Konstantopoulos, as has been their policy in cup games.
Boss Iain Dowie could also make changes in defence, with Elliott Ward, Robert Page and Ben Turner in contention.
BBC Weather:
Allegedly clear and 10°C.