Robson offered United role

Sir Alex Ferguson has offered Bryan Robson the chance to make a swift return to football at his old club Manchester United.

Robson has been lying low since leaving Middlesbrough at the end of last season but Ferguson wants him to come back to United and help out in training on an informal basis.

United emphasise that Robson has not been offered a coaching role and that Ferguson just wants to give his former skipper the opportunity "to keep his eye in".

United's director of communications Paddy Harverson was at pains to play down what had been offered to Robson.

"It's simply as the manager has said to me - an offer to come in just to keep his eye in," he said. "It's not a coaching role and it would be wrong to describe it like that.

"He's welcome to come down and watch training and get involved a bit."

Ferguson has issued a similar invitation to Eric Cantona to lend a hand in training whenever he wants and Harverson claims the United manager is just trying to help out his former players.

"It's what we do here - try and keep our ex-players as part of the family here," he said. "We like to keep them involved and let them feel they can come down whenever they want."