Age no barrier as Van der Sar stays hungry for more success

The Dutchman is enjoying an Indian summer to his career after arriving from Fulham in 2005.

He signed a one-year contract extension in February which means he will remain with the club at least until the end of the coming season.

United are aiming to regain their Premier League crown from Chelsea and improve in the Champions League after losing to Bayern Munich in the quarter-finals.

Van der Sar insists age should be no barrier to staying hungry and having the will to win. He said: "I have been hearing these questions for the last three or four years. Sometimes you surprise yourself also. It is a great club to be at.

"You play in the Premier League, the Champions League, you have a chance of winning titles and trophies and competing against the best players in the league.

"It is something that is too good not to do it any more. I still very much enjoy it. Even at my age it is still a pleasure to put in all the hard work so you are in the starting XI on a Saturday and a Tuesday night."

Van der Sar faces competition on the club's summer tour from Tomasz Kuszczak and rookie Ben Amos, following Ben Foster's departure.

And the former Ajax and Juventus No 1 believes United have a bright future.

Van der Sar said: "We have a great mix of some senior players and a whole crop of younger players coming through.

"United emphasise they are a club that produces young players. I can see some who will be here for a long time."

Manager Sir Alex Ferguson revealed that Rio Ferdinand is unlikely to be back until the beginning of September.

The England defender is recovering from a knee injury that caused him to miss the World Cup in South Africa.

Ferguson said: "Rio should be six weeks, I think. It was a ligament injury after all. You have to be careful with that." Ferguson believes he did the right thing by drafting in Chris Smalling despite his lack of top-flight experience.

He felt he had to "stock up" given Ferdinand's problems and the uncertainty over Nemanja Vidic, who, however, has agreed a four-year contract extension.

Ferguson said: "Last season we did not do our chances in the league a lot of good by the number of injuries we had to defenders. So we felt we should stock up in that department."