Manchester City’s prospective new ownership team may have talked about becoming “bigger than Manchester United and Real Madrid”, but it was almost with an air of contempt that Sir Alex Ferguson responded to those hugely ambitious claims yesterday.

As well as dismissing as “absolutely absurd” suggestions that City may be able to lure Cristiano Ronaldo from Old Trafford in January with a world-record bid of £135 million, the United manager professed himself unconcerned by the revolution taking place down the road and claimed that, for all their bold intentions, City could have trouble attracting the world’s best players.

“I disregard it, really, because it is all talk at the moment,” Ferguson said of the impending £200 million takeover of City by the Abu Dhabi Royal Family and the promise of vast riches. “There is plenty of talk coming from them at the moment, but we’ve seen it before and it will happen again.

“When it comes down to getting players — for instance, they’ve talked about getting Cristiano, which is absolutely absurd — they may find it difficult to get the players they want.

"History tells you something, too. Sunderland in the 1950s were relegated despite having the most expensive team, the so-called Bank of England team. Every player was bought for astronomical sums. You can buy 11 individuals but not have a team, so it’s very difficult to say what will happen \.”

Although Ferguson suggested that the arrival of Roman Abramovich at Chelsea and the subsequent success of the club, who have been bankrolled by the Russian’s billions, had served as “a wake-up call”, United have yet to be usurped as the pre-eminent force in English football, with their manager convinced that the Barclays Premier League and European champions can handle whatever challenges come their way while staying “true” to their roots.

“What you see of Manchester United today is not an overnight situation,” Ferguson said. “This club has been built up over many years now. It is not going to be here \ for today. We’ll be here for a long time, no matter where the challenges come from. We’ll still be there.

“When there is so much money flowing around the game, you have to stay true to yourselves. Yes, we’ve bought big players, but I don’t think you can see a cash cow from Manchester United in a way that could happen in other areas, the way that some clubs are talking at the moment.”