'Van Persie could have been killed' – Sir Alex Ferguson calls for action against Williams

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson claims that Robin van Persie “could have been killed” when Ashley Williams kicked the ball against his striker during Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Swansea City.

The Scot also called for the centre-back to receive a ban and slammed the “shocking performance” of referee Michael Oliver.

“Well it was a foul on Van Persie, a clear foul,” the United boss fumed to Sky Sports after the game, “but then again, the referee has had one of those days and not given us anything. He had a shocking performance today.

“I know he is a young referee but I was disappointed with that performance. The Van Persie situation, he clearly sees the incident.

“He could have been killed. I think the FA has got to look into it – irrespective of him getting a yellow card, he should be banned for a long time, because that was one of the most dangerous things I have seen on a football pitch in a long time.

“Absolutely deliberate. The whistle had gone, the game stopped and he has done that right in front of the referee. He could really have killed the lad.”

Sir Alex added of the overall performance, in which Michu cancelled out Patrice Evra’s opener: “We’ve thrown two points away really. We absolutely battered them. It’s unbelievable that we haven’t won the match.

“Great performance in the second half. If I have one criticism it would be that a poor final ball at times let us down but I have no criticism of the performance. It was very good.

“At the start of the season we would have taken that but today we have to look at that as a lost two points.”

Wayne Rooney’s performance at the Liberty Stadium drew criticism, Ryan Giggs replacing him with time to spare, and the Scot conceded: “No, he didn’t play well today. Simple as that. He missed a few opportunities and he’d agree.

“Ryan gives you a balance with his left foot. Ashley Young was doing alright on the right side so it was just a matter of form, really.”

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *