Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand has scoffed at claims over his back injury.

The Sunday Mirror says the rumour has been circulating that the Manchester United centre-back's injury saga is sparked by the fact one of his legs is shorter than the other.

That discrepancy is supposed to spark a series of back and leg muscle issues.

But his agent Pini Zahavi said: "I can assure you there's no truth in it whatsoever. I spoke to Rio about it - he didn't know whether to laugh or cry. The stories of him having one leg shorter than the other have been doing the rounds for weeks."

Zahavi claims Ferdinand is well on his way to recovery.

He added: "Rio is having treatment and has just started training. If his recovery continues to go well he could be back playing inside three weeks."