SOCCER:Alex Ferguson's edgy relationship with Arsene Wenger has taken another turn for the worse after the Manchester United manager accused his adversary of being "petty" and trying to portray himself as "the great Arsene Wenger".
Ferguson blames Wenger for instigating a debate about whether the Premiership leaders have a stamina problem, the allegation being that they tire 70 minutes into matches. Wenger last night denied making those remarks, but the damage may already have been done.
"It's a load of nonsense," said an angry Ferguson. "I'm not sure why he (Wenger) has said it, but I think it's about making him look great. You know, 'I'm the great Arsene Wenger'. It was petty for him to come out with that nonsense. There's absolutely no evidence to support it."
Ferguson was referring to comments, attributed to Wenger, about United "not being the same side" in the final 20 minutes of matches. Mathieu Flamini, Arsenal's midfielder, had said it formed part of Wenger's half-time team talk during United's 2-1 defeat at the Emirates Stadium last Sunday, a match in which they led until the final seven minutes.
Wenger's argument last night, however, was that there had been a misunderstanding. "I asked the team to go until the very last minute because we scored in the last five minutes at Old Trafford (in September). I said: 'Continue to play until the last minute because remember Old Trafford.' I didn't say: 'They crumble in the last 20 minutes.' I just said: 'Remember we scored at the end at Old Trafford, why should we not repeat that?' That's all."
It appeared to be a reasonable explanation and Wenger, anxious to avoid a public row, added he had never believed United's players were not fit enough. Ferguson, however, remains unhappy about what he sees as a deliberate attempt by Wenger to score points off him.
"We analyse all our games with statistics and, yes, we have been losing goals in the last 15 minutes. But that has been down to casualness and relaxing when we're in winning positions. We lost against Arsenal, for example, because of a lack of concentration, but (for Wenger) to say it's because of stamina is absolute nonsense. If they had lost the game 1-0, which they should have done, what would he have said then?"
Ferguson's mood had not been helped by the negative vibes coming from Bayern Munich about the proposed transfer of Owen Hargreaves, although the manager insisted he was "not giving up".
Either Ferguson or his assistant, Carlos Quieroz, will watch Gareth Bale play for Southampton at Manchester City tomorrow and, behind the scenes, United have confirmed they made an unsuccessful £5 million offer for the Wales international. The Premiership leaders are still optimistic about signing Bale but they know Tottenham have lodged an offer of around £8 million.
Arsenal, meanwhile, have said they will not enter the bidding. "I think he is potentially a great player but I am not in the race because I have two left-backs," said Wenger. "The club who get him will have a good deal - an expensive one, but a good player."
The subject of Cristiano Ronaldo's future also came up, with Ferguson accusing Real Madrid of trying to unsettle the Portugal international in the same way "they did David Beckham". Ferguson knows Madrid and Barcelona are interested but he said there were no plans to offer Ronaldo a new deal, contradicting Queiroz's statements earlier in the week.
Earlier this week, Queiroz suggested United were ready to open contract negotiations with Ronaldo, even though the Portugal international's present deal does not expire until 2010.
Ferguson joked he would be 'in a wheelchair' by that time, although he was deadly serious when he stated Real have no chance of getting their man.
"We sell players we want to sell and there is absolutely no way Cristiano Ronaldo is leaving," he said.
Guardian Service
