Man Utd News: Rio Ferdinand Sees Light Side Of Derby Coin Attack

laughed off the shameful coin attack on him in this weekend's Manchester Derby by writing on Twitter "could have at least been a £1 coin!" Ferdinand was celebrating Robin van Persie's dramatic 92nd minute winner when the incident occurred, television replays showing a coin striking him in the face and drawing blood as an otherwise fantastic Manchester Derby descended into the mire. The former England captain wrote on the micro social networking site:

"Whoever threw that coin, what a shot! Can't believe it was a copper 2p... could have at least been a £1 coin!"

He also thanked Manchester City goalkeeper Joe Hart for stopping a pitch invader from reaching him as tempers boiled over at the Etihad. In a separate Tweet, Ferdinand wrote:

"Respect to Joe Hart for protecting that idiot who ran on!! Love the banter between fans but there is a point when it goes too far...calm it!"

The pitch invader, a Man City fan, was later taken away by Police, who confirmed no arrests had yet been made regarding the coin incident. Earlier in the game, Wayne Rooney, who scored the opening two goals of the match to give his side a commanding advantage at the interval, was the subject of missile throwing whilst attempting to take a corner kick. An FA Spokesman confirmed it would "Liaise with Greater Manchester Police regarding identifying those responsible and issuing lifetime bans". The spokesman added:

"It is disappointing that after a great game and advert for the Premier League that we are discussing this issue. "We will work with the clubs and authorities to identify those responsible and support the strongest sanctions available including life bans. We condemn any such acts and it is simply unacceptable that any player is exposed to injury in this way. To witness Rio Ferdinand leaving the field with a cut above his eye to receive treatment is appalling. "Football in this country has made great progress over recent decades. However, we must maintain the safety and security inside of our stadia and to do this we need to isolate and identify any individuals guilty of offences with strong penalties to act as a deterrent to others."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IQuiYVTKCpI Manchester City meanwhile have also condemned the attack and apologized to Ferdinand via a club statement.

"We apologise to Rio. We condemn the actions of the individual concerned. We will support the police with any investigation and hopefully identify the person as soon as possible. "'s review of all fan behaviour at today's match will be fully supported by the club, through the provision of CCTV footage and eyewitness accounts. "Following this review, and any associated police action, the club will also apply its own disciplinary policies for any fans found guilty of offences."

United manager Sir Alex Ferguson said that it was "unfortunate" that the coin had been thrown.

"That shouldn't happen. The same thing happened at Chelsea, which was masked by all the other things. We could have done without that. "We can do without that, after a great game between two sides."