Furious Fergie defends ref rant

ALEX FERGUSON maintains he feels “aggrieved” at the performance of referee Mark Clattenburg at Bolton on Saturday.

As expected, Ferguson has been charged by the Football Association with “using abusive and insulting words towards an official” following his half-time altercation with Clattenburg, which resulted in his dismissal to the stands for the second-half of Manchester United’s 1-0 defeat.

Ferguson was upset that Clattenburg failed to protect his players against what he claimed were “over-aggressive” tactics from Gary Megson’s side, with Kevin Davies in particular irritating the Scot by meting out some rough treatment on full-back Patrice Evra.