Is reliance on youth an admission of poverty?

Sir Alex Ferguson has always been the master of the media. He knows what to say and how to say it in order to put pressure on opponents, referees or even control the headlines by blasting the journalists he is being interviewed by.

He will do his best to make sure United are always shown in the best possible light. He knows the game and plays it well.

But I can't help but question some of his assertions this summer with the evidence to the contrary becoming more and more overwhelming with each passing day.

His declaration is that it is the Manchester United way to rely on youth and develop young players is one example. That is certainly an admirable sentiment but is funny how Ferguson decides to tell us this now, with United barely making a ripple in the transfer market compared to previous years.

I don't remember this being a priority when Berbatov signed on for £30 million or Rio joined for £28 million.

The cynical side of me thinks that Ferguson is relying on his young players because the river has run dry. With just £20 million spent last year and £19 million so far this you have to wonder about the state of Man United's finances, especially as the sale of Ronaldo netted £80 million.

Can a side that fared relatively poorly in Europe last season really expect to justify its Champions League betting odds without investing in its squad?

Ferguson tells us the money is there, but he chooses not to spend it, though the £69 million a year on interest payments must surely burn a huge hole in his transfer kitty.

It can be argued that Ferguson was only two points away from winning the league last season so there is no need to panic. But last year was a strange year in the title race, with each contender conceding their advantage time after time. If one team had taken the league by the scruff on the neck United wouldn't have come close.

The Premier League 2010/11 betting suggests the club will be in with a chance of winning again, but they could be in danger of being blown away.

The same problems still remain, the reliance on Rooney and an ever aging squad - 12 players 29 or over is not a healthy squad balance -mean the seeds of squad development need planting now, not when Giggs and Scholes hang up their boots.

Generations of youngsters like the one that came along in the mid 90s don't come through very often and it is hard to see the current crop of young Red Devils doing the same as Beckham and co 15 years ago.

Just don't tell Alex Ferguson I said that.