MANCHESTER United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has announced his plans for retirement.The bad news for opposition teams is that the long-serving Old Trafford boss has no intention of stepping down for another three years.

MANCHESTER United manager Sir Alex Ferguson has announced his intentions for retirement.

The bad news for opposition teams is that the long-serving Old Trafford boss has no thought of stepping down for another three years.

By then he will have ruled the Reds for a staggering quarter of a century.

Ferguson has won 18 trophies after arriving at the club in November 1986 from Aberdeen, but is clearly hungry for more silverware.

United are still in line for the treble for the first time since 1999 and face Portsmouth in the FA Cup tomorrow.

They are also aiming to retain their league title and have already booked a place in the quarter-finals of the Champions League this week after beating Lyon.

Three years have passed since Ferguson announced plans to retire, only to change his mind before the season came to a close.

Since then he has he rebuilt his side, going and last season claimed his ninth Barclays Premier League crown.

But Ferguson says it will be time go when he is 69.

"I'm getting beyond the future now," he told French radio.

"I still have a lot of passion. I'm still happy. But I'm 66 now - maybe three years more, then I'll finish.'

Ferguson said it was too soon to mark out his successor. But he added: "I have a great assistant in Carlos Queiroz. He will come into the reckoning.

"But we have owners and a chief executive who will choose the new man in three years' time.'