Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo celebrates scoring a penalty against Everton during their English Premier League soccer match at Old Trafford in Manchester, northern England, yesterday. United won 2-1.

manchester, england (ap)

With few attacking options, Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson's focus is on limiting the damage of once again having a weakened squad at the start of the season.

Chelsea, meanwhile, goes into its opener against Portsmouth full of confidence after being denied the trophy by two points in May.

second-worst start

Ferguson experienced his second-worst Premier League start last August with his team producing just one goal and two points in three games, but bounced back to win a second straight title.

While Wayne Rooney will likely partner Carlos Tevez in Sunday's season opener against Newcastle, Cristiano Ronaldo is sidelined until October after leading the team with 42 goals last season. France striker Louis Saha is also injured, while Nani is suspended and Anderson is competing at the Olympics for Brazil.

Even if his young side slumps in the early games, Ferguson is confident it can respond to any setback.

"Last season we had a staggered start, Tevez and Anderson joined us and weren't 100 per cent fit, Ronaldo got suspended for three games after the first game, then Rooney got injured in the first match against Reading and was out for three games," Ferguson said Friday. "By the time we got everyone focused and fit, we then went on a fantastic run with our consistency and really good football."

Kevin Keegan will begin his first full season back with the Magpies without England striker Michael Owen, who has only just returned to training after a calf problem.

Chelsea captain John Terry hopes his team can capitalise on United's shortcomings and pull away early, starting with a win against Portsmouth on Sunday.

Terry, who is desperate to regain the trophy after two seasons, sees the acquisition of Portugal playmaker Deco as a valuable offseason addition from FC Barcelona.

In Sunday's other match, Mark Hughes faces a tough task preparing his new Manchester City side for a trip to Aston Villa.

Liverpool and Arsenal, meanwhile, will try to put pressure on their title rivals by winning their matches today, after contrasting performances in the midweek qualifying matches for the Champions League group stage.

Arsenal hosts newly promoted West Brom after securing a 2-0 lead at FC Twente, with Arsene Wenger set to hand Samir Nasri his full debut.

Liverpool only managed a 0-0 draw at Standard Liege, although captain Steven Gerrard will be in better match fitness for the trip to Sunderland following a thigh injury.

Ronaldo will be out of action for United until October.