Fergie defends Torres remark

Sir Alex Ferguson has insisted he did not accuse Fernando Torres of being a cheat following Manchester United's victory over Liverpool.

Dimitar Berbatov scored a stunning hat-trick to inspire the Red Devils to a 3-2 success against their fierce rivals at Old Trafford last weekend.

And Ferguson believes it is a shame that coverage of the game was dominated by his remarks about Torres rather than the Bulgarian's brilliant performance.

The United manager stated that Torres 'tried to get our player sent off' after 'making a meal of' a challenge by John O'Shea that led to the Irish defender being given his marching orders.

This was interpreted as Ferguson calling the Spain striker 'a cheat' but is a comment the Scot says is not correct.

"You'd think Berbatov would get the headlines, but it was all me saying Torres was a cheat, which was ridiculous," he said.

"I thought he made the most of it. That's not to say the guy's a cheat."