• FA Cup

Ferdinand slams City sulkers

Rio Ferdinand says Sir Alex Ferguson would "pull rank" on any dressing room egos © Getty Images

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Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand has stoked the derby fires ahead of Saturday's FA Cup semi-final by claiming Manchester City's players' poor attitudes would not be tolerated at Old Trafford.

United will relish the chance to extend City's trophy drought by defeating them at Wembley, thus denying them what seems an inevitable piece of silverware based on the enormous money the club's owners have poured in recently.

But such heavy investment in a star-studded squad comes with the burden of a dressing room full of colliding egos and a challenge for manager Roberto Mancini of fostering a team ethic in a hastily assembled group.

City's season has been dotted with bust-ups between players at training, a fact goalkeeper Joe Hart acknowledged this week, while James Milner became the latest City player to express his obvious displeasure at being substituted by shaking his head as he came off in City's 3-0 loss to Liverpool on Monday.

Ferdinand said the difference between City and United is that Sir Alex Ferguson commands total respect at Old Trafford and the squad is a tight-knit unit pulling in the same direction.

"You don't see anyone come off the pitch shaking their head, being disgruntled, or sitting on the bench in a sulk at this club," Ferdinand said. "It won't happen here because everyone is delighted to play for this club and they want to be here. The moment you show a bit of dissent like that, the manager pulls rank, and rightly so.

"It's an unwritten rule at this club. You see it in the changing room before games. There are no cliques. People are wishing each other well before games, even if someone else is playing in your position. That's just the way we are."

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