Benitez reopens Ferguson feud

Chelsea boss Rafa Benitez has reiterated his 2009 claim that Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson puts undue pressure on match officials.

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The pair have shared a fractious relationship for years, dating back to Benitez's spell in charge of Liverpool and highlighted by the Spaniard's famous speech four years ago in which he suggested Ferguson was never punished for verbally abusing referees and their assistants.

"I always try to concentrate on my job, but at that time with Ferguson I was defending my club," Benitez said in an interview with The Times.

"I could see what was happening from my point of view, and maybe now a lot of people are seeing the same things. I will not talk too much about that because it's obvious."

Ferguson's behaviour was brought into the spotlight again on Sunday when he accused linesman Simon Beck of having a "shocking" game in the Red Devils' 1-1 Barclays Premier League draw at Tottenham, saying the visitors "never got anything from that side of the pitch".

The Scot has been contacted by the Football Association to explain comments and has until 6pm on Thursday to respond.

"It's a question for the FA what they do about it," Benitez added. "What I said at that time was what I thought, and what I'm seeing now is similar.

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"It depends on the FA. I don't know what they will do - it depends on them. At this moment in time I have enough things to do here, so I want to concentrate on my job."

The Spaniard is on a short-term deal with the Blues but wants to stay in the Premier League beyond the end of the season.

And while the 52-year-old will consider his options, he is in doubt that his best opportunity is the one at Chelsea he has right now.

"A lot of doors can be opened but the main one is this one here," Benitez told The Times.

"I don't want to enter this debate at the moment, as the priority for me is to do really well and to win trophies for this club. But afterwards we will see and you never know.

"Staying in the Premier League is my priority but I am a professional and may have to consider other options when thinking about the future. I'm focused on winning here for the moment.

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"I had different offers in different countries, but the priority for me was coming back to the Premier League and to a club that can challenge for trophies.

"Chelsea is an ideal club because we can still win trophies. If we continue playing in the way we did against Arsenal, everybody will be really pleased.

"When I say everybody I mean everybody - the fans, the owner, the staff, the players and everybody. When the team is doing well, it will give me a way to move forward."

Benitez's chances of staying at Chelsea beyond the end of the season appear to have improved following Pep Guardiola's decision to move to Bayern Munich in the summer.