It was not only the long-awaited conclusion of the Carlos Tévez saga that brought a smile to Sir Alex Ferguson’s face yesterday. Football’s most pugnacious pensioner was in bullish mood as his 34th season in management dawned, heartened by the knowledge that Manchester United are the team to beat again and invigorated by the challenge of winning his unparalleled tenth title at Old Trafford.

Ferguson said that lifting a tenth title would be “fantastic” and, while he sought to extend the challenge to Ryan Giggs, his most experienced player, there was no mistaking the glint in his eyes as the idea was put to him. “That would be a tremendous incentive and I wonder if it could be done again by a player or manager,” he said. “But the challenge is more for the players, like Ryan, for instance.”

It is a challenge that Ferguson believes is within the capabilities of his squad, which he considers the most talented - in technical terms - that he has assembled. His summer signings, Owen Hargreaves, Nani, Anderson and Tévez, should bring different qualities to the champions, but Ferguson is also looking for improvement from Wayne Rooney, Cristiano Ronaldo and others, whom he expects to be emboldened by last season’s success.

“A team that has won the league has more continuity and consistency,” the United manager said as he looked ahead to his side’s opening Barclays Premier League match at home to Reading tomorrow. “We have noticed that in pre-season tours. It is a far more settled situation and we expect the young players, Rooney and Ronaldo, to improve.

“Nani and Anderson will improve and we would expect far more authority from [Darren] Fletcher, [John] O’Shea, [Nemanja] Vidic and [Patrice] Evra. We also have people to call on in terms of experience in terms of [Gary] Neville, Giggs, [Rio] Ferdinand and [Edwin] Van der Sar.”

Significantly, there was no mention of Gabriel Heinze, the Argentina defender whose position at United appears untenable in view of his continuing agitation for a transfer to Liverpool. That feeling was reinforced last night when the club’s new squad numbers were released, with Heinze taking the No 14 after his No 4 shirt was allocated to Hargreaves. As squad number snubs go, it is not in the same league as the one delivered to William Gallas, who lost his squad number at Chelsea when pushing for a move to Arsenal 12 months ago, but it is hardly in keeping with Ferguson’s suggestion yesterday that Heinze has a future at Old Trafford.

Heinze’s fate will be determined by the Premier League, which he has asked to resolve his dispute with United, but Ferguson was happy to welcome one of his Argentina teammates yesterday when Tévez, having trained at Carrington for the previous seven days, was confirmed as a United player. The club will pay about £10 million to retain Tévez on a two-year contract under the terms of their agreement with the two companies that, as owners of the player’s economic rights, reached a separate settlement with West Ham United.

Having played in the Copa America until July 15, Tévez is not yet match fit, with Ferguson suggesting that he will not figure against Reading tomorrow. With Louis Saha and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer having just resumed full training, the United manager may consider using Tévez as a substitute tomorrow or away to Portsmouth on Wednesday, but with Hargreaves, Nani and Anderson having had problems during preseason training, the team may have a familiar look.

Not that Steve Coppell, the Reading manager and United old boy, would regard that as a blessing. “They are the cream of the crop,” he said. “As we stand at the moment, before a ball has been kicked this weekend, they are the champions. And they’ve added £50 million-worth [of players]. It’s an enviable position to be in.”