United's squad too strong for City smiles Vidic

Crocked Manchester United captain Nemanja Vidic has taken a swipe at title rivals Manchester City, insisting they don't have the squad to win the league.

The Old Trafford skipper, who won't be back until next season because of a knee injury suffered before Christmas, insisted he always had faith his team-mates would retain the championship in his absence... because of their strength in depth.

Unlike City, Vidic argued, his club boasts such an array of talent they can remain competitive no matter who is missing, which is the opposite of their neightbours from across the city, who seemed to have struggled desperately when without their own captain and centre-half, Vincent Kompany.

"It doesn't matter who is out, Manchester United never depend on one player. When I've been out I had the belief from the beginning we would still win the title," said Vidic.

"And, if you look at the schedule of the games we have left to play now, we are the favourites.

"If you look at the past, players have left or been out and fans have been worried, but we still win titles and trophies.

"That is why Manchester United are special. That is why the manager is the best at replacing players and finding young players. He showed that over the years."

City have fallen away in the past few weeks, largely because they have failed to cover key absences in their squad, but at Old Trafford, not even the worst injury crisis in recent memory has stopped them.

There were some dire predictions when Vidic picked up his cruciate ligament injury, with many fearing they relied too heavily on their outstanding centre half, but he had no such doubts.

"I always believed we would challenge for the title. We changed some players last season and others went, but no problem," he said.

"We got some young players. We didn't expect the young players would play that many games and would have so much influence on the team. This is a great plus for the club.

"Obviously we have had some injuries over the past year, which is another difficult thing we have gone through. We have had so many players get injured at different times. But we have coped and been very competitive with Manchester City.

"Now we are at the top of the league and have a big chance to win it."