Manchester United's Guide to Winning the Premier League

And we're off. The new Premier League season is finally upon us and with the first round of games completed, I think it's time to assess the keys to Manchester United reclaiming their Premier League title.

Manchester United's season began with a disciplined victory over newly promoted Birmingham at Old Trafford earlier today. Wayne Rooney grabbed the only goal in a deserved 1-0 victory over Alex McLeish's men. The game held added significance as it was the first Premier League game after Ronaldo's departure.

With the departure of Ronaldo comes the introduction of a new formation and more importantly, a new star man. The man I refer to is of course, Wayne Rooney.

In the two games United have featured in this season, Rooney has looked dangerous and predator-like, scoring in both games and coming very close on a number of occasions.

For Man United to reclaim their title, they simply must get polished performances from Rooney and Berbatov, who has yet to show his true potential. Perhaps he will benefit from having completed a full preseason, or perhaps the change of tactics will come as a boost to the player.

One thing is for sure though—Berbatov has to justify his £30 million price tag and he has to do it now.

Last season Man United were without a holding midfielder. A dogged, no-nonsense gritty player to restrict the opposition's movement and act as a platform for all attacks. Darren Fletcher has performed capably in a similar role, but Owen Hargreaves must return from injury to give Man United a chance of reclaiming the title.

He is exactly the player that United needed in Rome and it is vital that he overcomes his tendinitis problems, as if he does, one has to believe that Man United will be the dominant force in English football this season.

Nani is a player who has mountains of potential, but he has thus far failed to live up to it. From the evidence of the opening games, I believe that Nani will step out of Ronaldo's dark shadow to become the player Ferguson always knew he could be. He needs to become a team player, as the team moves toward a collective game plan.

He can dazzle, and the fact that Barcelona outlined their interest to Ferguson speaks for itself. Ferguson responded to their enquiry with an emphatic no, such is his belief in the Portuguese wide man, who will surely have to improve on his 13 league appearances of last term.

Rio Ferdinand is becoming something of a worry for Man United fans. The centre back is becoming increasingly injury prone, something Man United cannot afford. While Jonny Evans is a capable deputy, who would you rather have on your team sheet.

Ferdinand is a world class defender and to win the league you need first class players. If Ferdinand manages to remain fully fit all season it would provide United with a significant boost.

The final key to United reclaiming their trophy is their Christmas form. Last season one has to believe that Liverpool would have had a better chance had they not drawn eight games around the winter period. Man United are experts at getting results when they count and I think that this is a great advantage over the other top teams.

The objective is clear, the path is no doubt hard, but if all of these things go right for United, it will surely be a Red Devil who lifts the title this year.