has identified Michael Carrick as the most important player in Manchester United's quest to win back the title.
Ferguson acknowledges he has a problem in central midfield, with Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs now firmly in the veteran category, Anderson and Tom Cleverley injury-prone and Darren Fletcher still sidelined with a medical condition.
That leaves Carrick - and Fergie has hailed a player who turned his back on England and Euro 2012 after being consistently overlooked as United's main man for the upcoming campaign.
"I think Carrick is the key to it," said Ferguson during a break from United's pre-season tour of South Africa.
"He did really well in second half of last season and I think he's going to be the key man.
"Scholes will obviously play his part, Giggs as well and Cleverley hopefully, as well as Anderson if he keeps fit.
"They will all play a part but, for me, Carrick is the key player."
It's a far cry from the start of last season, when Carrick struggled to get into the United side as Anderson and Cleverley formed a successful partnership in central midfield.
But when both players suffered injuries, Carrick reclaimed his place and was arguably one of United's most consistent performers in their unsuccessful title fight against Manchester City.
Despite his understated style, Ferguson hailed the Geordie, who turns 31 next week, as one of the most accomplished central midfielders in the Premier League.
"Michael has always had slow starts to a season," said Ferguson, who feels United are still the team to beat in the new campaign despite City's triumph. "He denies this. He doesn't think that's true, but I do.
"By the time he gets to December, he starts playing consistently well. He had a really good end to the season.
"If you look at the central midfielders in the Premier League, he can match up against any of them in terms of quality.
"The likes of Luka Modric, Yaya Toure, those are probably the best central midfielders - as well as Steven Gerrard, depending on where you play him, but I'm not sure he's actually a central midfield player.
"Michael can read the game and also play in front of the back four.
"In the modern day game, you don't need tacklers the same way you used to. There's no call for it.
"It's all about anticipation and reading the game. The refereeing is of such a standard that you can hardly tackle anyone now, so that sort of thing isn't the same issue as it used to be."
Despite his high praise for Carrick, Ferguson remains desperate to recruit a creative player for the middle of the park.
"We do have an issue in central midfield, there's no doubt about that, because getting a Scholes or a Carrick is very difficult these days," said Ferguson.
"We have the boy Nick Powell coming through, but he's young and although he's a very good talent he'll eventually be a midfield player.
"The boy Cleverley will contribute if he can stay clear of injuries.
"He had a horrendous year last year but if he can get through a season he'll contribute because he's a very clever player.
"But we have plenty of ammunition in Ashley Young, Nani, Antonio Valencia, Shinji Kagawa, Wayne Rooney, Danny Welbeck and Chicharito - and maybe Dimitar Berbatov will have to stay."