Source: Daily_Mail
Rio Ferdinand cleared to face City as Manchester United star appeals violent conduct charge
[LNB]Clash: Ferdinand (left) came together with Hull City's Craig Fagan at the weekend[LNB]Rio Ferdinand will contest the violent conduct charge handed to him by the FA for appearing to elbow Hull City's Craig Fagan.[LNB]The decision means that the Manchester United defender will be available for the Carling Cup semi-final second leg against Manchester City at Old Trafford.[LNB]Ferdinand had been given until 6pm on Wednesday to respond to the charge relating to an off-the-ball incident with Fagan during United's 4-0 rout of Hull on Saturday.[LNB]Had the England star accepted the charge, he would have been automatically banned for three matches, missing the clash with City and the Premier League matches against Arsenal and Portsmouth.[LNB]However, he will now face adisciplinary commission on Thursday and could be hit with a four-gamesuspension were he to be found guilty and the panel decide he hasattempted to abuse the process.[LNB]The incident against Hull came as when the ball was not even in the penalty area at the time and referee Steve Bennett did not see the incident.[LNB] Hand signals: Gary Neville (left) and Carlos Tevez clash in the first leg[LNB][LNB]Ferdinand's only defence could be that he acted instinctively in response to foul play from Fagan.[LNB]If the disciplinary panel disagree then can add further punishmentat their discretion, , as was the case when adding an extra game to theban for Sunderland's Michael Turner following his appeal against thered card hereceived at Manchester City last month. [LNB] Ferdinand's absence for the Manchester derby could mean a recall forGary Neville and a potential confrontation with Carlos Tevez just daysafter their bust-up in City's 2-1 first-leg victory. [LNB] Ferguson set to hand Anderson huge fine after Brazilian skipped trainingManchester on red alert as police make arrests ahead of derby at Old Trafford'I've got unfinished business at Manchester United,' says loan ranger Zoran Tosic as flop joins Cologne on loanFerguson insists money doesn't matter when Man United tackle rivals CityJAMIE REDKNAPP: My three key areas that will decide the Manchester derbyMANCHESTER UNITED FC
