Source: Telegraph
Manchester United's Rio Ferdinand right to contest charge, says Sir Alex Ferguson
Ferdinand, 31, was able to play in Manchester United's 3-1 Carling Cup semi-final win against Manchester City last night after denying the charge prior to Wednesday's 6pm deadline. [LNB]The England international had been warned by United's disciplinary advisers that he could be hit with a four-match ban, rather than the mandatory three-game suspension, by the FA if they deem his appeal to be 'frivilous.' [LNB] Related ArticlesMan Utd 3 Man City 1; agg 4-3Tevez relishes role as fall guyUnited face action after Bellamy hitWayne Rooney 'world class'United v City: as it happenedRooney rules ManchesterSuch a ban would see the £30m centre-half banned from domestic football in the Carling Cup final against Aston Villa at Wembley on Feb 28. [LNB]But United manager Ferguson insists he is backing Ferdinand's appeal and insists he can overturn the charge and be free to face Arsenal at the Emirates on Sunday. [LNB]Ferguson said: "If it's a fair hearing then he (Ferdinand) has a good chance. He was wrestled and punched, all sorts of things happened to him, and he was just trying to wrestle free from it. [LNB]'Unfortunately for us, he's caught him [Fagan] on the back of the head. But we will contest it." [LNB]United clinched a 4-3 aggregate victory over their Mancunian neighbours with Wayne Rooney's winning goal, two minutes into stoppage time. [LNB]But despite his central role in United's win, Rooney insisted that much of the credit for the victory is due to midfielder Darren Fletcher, who produced a memorable performance for the home side. [LNB]Rooney said: 'Fletch has been playing ike this for years now and he underlines what United are all about. [LNB]'He works hard and has a great attitude, but he has only been getting the credit for the last couple of years. [LNB]'He rises to the big occasion, but he is a world class player and I wouldn't swap him for any player in the world. [LNB]'We were deserved winners. We started well and when we went at City, they didn't know what to do. [LNB]'We had players like Fletch, Michael Carrick and Paul Scholes ratting about and thankfully we scored at the end.' [LNB]
