Piqué and Rossi ready to roll

While much of the talk has been about the arrival of Portugal winger Nani, Brazil playmaker Anderson and, most likely, Argentina forward Carlos Tévez at Manchester United FC, it could yet be a starlet from Spain or Italy who shines brightest next season.

In demand
Gerard Piqué and Giuseppe Rossi enjoyed tremendous campaigns on loan away from Old Trafford in the 2006/07 season with the former starring in defence alongside Gabriel Milito at Real Zaragoza and the latter proving prolific at Parma FC, ultimately firing the goals that helped keep the club in Serie A. Both have since been courted by clubs across the continent but United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has confirmed to the club's official website that as things stand both men will have a role to play in their defence of the Premier League crown.

Close eye
"The lads going away proved themselves," he said. "Giuseppe scored nine goals in 19 matches for Parma and the consensus is that he kept them up. Everyone says that. Gerard played 24 games for Zaragoza and did exceptionally well. We got all the videos of the players and watched what they did in training. They will certainly come back." Both 20-year-olds return to a squad that retains Sir Alex's traditional reliance on the blend of youth and experience, and where Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes are as valued as Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney.

Born winner
Piqué is one of a talented pool of young defenders coming through for Spain, including the already established Raúl Albiol and Sergio Ramos. With UEFA medals at Under-17 and U19 level, he is a born winner who is determined to prove himself at the highest level. Speaking to uefa.com last season, he admitted: "I hope next season I'll go back to Manchester and get a place," he said. "I talked to the boss and he said he wanted to come to the stadium to see us play. I will try to show him that everything is going fine and I'm playing well." Few doubt he did just that.

High praise
Rossi has earned rave reviews for his form at Parma, the club he joined in January after a similar loan at Newcastle United FC. He went on to play for the Azzurrini at this summer’s UEFA European Under-21 Championship under Pierluigi Casiraghi, with the coach, himself a former top-level striker, unstinting in praise for Rossi by describing him as having "the grace of Alessandro Del Piero". Some think Rossi's stay at United could yet be uncertain if Tévez does arrive as expected from West Ham United FC but Sir Alex insists that just being involved with his star-studded squad helps develop a player.

Strong pool
He added: "Hopefully we now have a strong enough pool of players. That's one of the reasons I was keen to get the young lads who were away on loan last year back at the club. They will develop better with us. They may play more regularly away on loan, but training with us and being part of the squad brings them on immeasurably." While all eyes may be on Nani, Anderson and Tévez, both Piqué and Rossi look to have the ability and, more importantly, the opportunity to steal their thunder.