Sir Alex Ferguson remains adamant that Manchester United will not sell Cristiano Ronaldo after meeting with the player in Portugal last week. The United manager said Ronaldo, who has publicly requested a transfer to Real Madrid, would definitely remain at Old Trafford next season, though the winger will be out for three months with an ankle injury.

"The meeting went well - I think we both put across our points of view - where we stand and where the player stands," explained Ferguson. "I can say he'll be a Manchester United player next season. That's our stance - he won't be sold."

Ferguson went on to insist he had never been worried about the player, adding: "It's not a difficult position. I was on my holiday and I was not going to interrupt my holiday, believe me. I wasn't panicked because the player is under contract so the strength and the rights are with Manchester United."

"What we have done well is to say nothing. We've kept quiet on this matter and kept it private and what I said to Cristiano remains private. I did go and see him last week in Portugal and it was very amicable – there were no problems. That's where we are and we carry on."

Ferguson said he expected the player to be out until October with his current ankle problem. "He's had an operation and he'll be out for three months," continued Ferguson. "He's on crutches for the first four weeks, he'll be in rehabilitation for the next four and then the following four he'll be back into football training. The time mapped out is three months and we won't bring him back a day earlier than that.

"I think when players have operations we have a responsibility that the player comes back 100 per cent and we'll carry that out as we normally do. There'll be no risk-taking – we never take risks. Our goal is to always make sure that the player gets back 100% and that will be the same in the case of Cristiano Ronaldo."