Man Utd defender Ferdinand: Beating Man City in Cup won't influence title battle

Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand doesn't believe their FA Cup triumph over Manchester City will be decisive in the Premier League title race.

The Reds beat City 3-2 in the FA Cup third round, knocking the current holders out of the competition at the first hurdle, prompting some to suggest the balance of power in Manchester has shifted back to Sir Alex’s men.

“I don’t think it’s advantage United now,” Ferdinand told manutd.com. “It’s too early to say. We’re all around the same area and fighting for the same thing. You all have your peaks and troughs in the season.”

Ferdinand and his team-mates went into that game in a trough of their own, after consecutive defeats against Newcastle and Blackburn. But the Reds defender insists spirits in the United camp remained high over the New Year period, despite the poor results.

“You always know there will be ups and downs during the season,” he said. “We had a bad week the one before [the City game], losing two games. But there is no better game to come back than Manchester City. It was a great first-half.

“In the second we took our foot off the gas and let them back in the game, but the result is the most important thing and we got through to the next round.

“Hopefully Manchester City and Tottenham will experience lows that go on a lot longer and we can get a few players back from injury and push on.”