Ex-Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand has admitted that his former club are less likely to win the Champions League than either Manchester City or Chelsea this season.

Ferdinand believes that, unlike the Red Devils, the likes of City simply have more experience of winning trophies that will hold them in good stead in the competition:

“I would put City and Chelsea above Man United right at this moment in time, it could change. Chelsea look like a team capable of pulling results out at any given time. City have the experience as well of winning things but Man United are the least experienced of the four [English] teams and least amount of understanding of how to win trophies.”

It is a rather surprising admission from Ferdinand, considering that the Red Devils have recently added the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Raphael Varane to their ranks, who have won multiple European Cups.

That “understanding of how to win trophies” may, however, be referring to the managers in question. City boss Pep Guardiola has won multiple titles with his current team, as well as the Champions League at Barcelona. Chelsea won the trophy back in May.

United head coach Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, in contrast, has lost out in numerous semi-finals, as well as the Europa League final last campaign, so there are still question marks about his ability to secure trophies as a manager.