Media Won't Change Ronaldo

Ferguson believes that Ronaldo won't fall in to the same sort of traps as previous United number sevens.

"Ronaldo is an intelligent boy who looks after himself," Ferguson declared. "He has a lot of pluses. How players handle that celebrity kind of attention, you never know, but with Ronaldo he seems to do OK with that.

"The problem comes when players get flattered by it and start enjoying it. That's when you start worrying but at the moment there's absolutely no sign that the boy will be wasted by it. When people ask to interview him, it doesn't worry me too much. He can cope.

"It's obvious when a talent like that comes along that there will be attention but this club has been used to that for years now.

"Ronaldo is 22 and at that age you have to be flexible when it comes to curtailing their youthfulness. They like to dress differently and they want a bit of freedom in their choices. They want to be men before they are men and, with Cristiano, a lot has happened to him in his time at Manchester United; but he has matured fantastically well."