Ryan Giggs believes Manchester City's Champions League adventure will test their tilt for the Premier League title to the limit.
Both Manchester clubs have recorded four wins from their opening four English top flight games and begin their European campaign on Wednesday.
Giggs thinks City's inexperience in the Champions League, combined with tough matches against Villarreal, Bayern Munich and Napoli, will test their Premier League credentials to the full.
In an exclusive interview with MUTV, Giggs said: "Manchester City will be right up there because of the quality they have and the money,'' he said. "They have been able to go out and buy so many top players. The test is the first season in the Champions League. Tottenham found it out to a degree.
"We found it tough early on to get that mix of playing in a Champions League game, which takes so much out of you physically and emotionally, and then have a hard Premier League game the following weekend. You need the squad to handle it, so we will see if they can do what ourselves, Arsenal and Chelsea have done over the years.''
With three final appearances in the past four seasons, United are enjoying a golden period in terms of European combat. The fact it doesn not seem that way is purely due to the brilliance of Barcelona, who have denied Giggs and his team-mates on the two most recent of those occasions.
It is widely accepted that United were better at Wembley in May than they had been in Rome two years previously. Equally, it is undeniable they were a clear second best, outclassed by a team who turned ball retention into an art form and possess a group of the greatest players on the planet.
"It is difficult to bridge the gap because they are such a good team,'' reflected Giggs. "But it is not impossible. Teams have beaten them. We beat them three years ago.
"(In personnel) it is not too different from then. What they have got is the experience and confidence of winning things. We have to overcome that. If we come up against them again, we will be confident of beating them. You have to learn from your mistakes and get better.''
The problem is obvious. Xavi and Andres Iniesta can take control of games in central midfield while David Villa always provides a goal threat. Add Cesc Fabregas to the list and the task becomes tougher still. And Lionel Messi has not even been mentioned yet.
"He is probably the best player of the last 20 years,'' said Giggs. "He is such a slippery player. Because of his height and quickness he is difficult to pin down and his balance is exceptional. Cristiano (Ronaldo) runs him close but Messi has won the Champions League for two of the last three years and scored in the final both times. That is what sets people apart; big players score in big games."
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