Manchester United defender Gerard Pique insists he and his teammates were provoked by Chelsea groundsmen before they clashed on Saturday.

"Basically, this came about because of the provocation of somebody who works for Chelsea," Pique said.

"Patrice (Evra) wanted an explanation but these men were very aggressive. All we were doing was finishing our work-out after the game.

"Even now, I just do not understand the reaction of these people. I have seen the photos and, if the images are stored in the CCTV cameras then it will be impossible for them to say that the players were not provoked."