Rafael Benítez has dismissed Sir Alex Ferguson's latest
condemnation of the treatment afforded Cristiano Ronaldo as a
blatant attempt to influence the match officials involved in
Liverpool's visit to Old Trafford on Sunday.
Ronaldo's suffering at the hands, shoulders and feet of his
opponents has become a cause célèbre for the Manchester United
manager, a debate Ferguson intensified following the FA Cup exit
against Portsmouth and continued in his programme notes for
Wednesday's fixture with Bolton. "When Ronaldo is running at full
speed sometimes it doesn't take much to knock him over," he wrote.
"But the truth is that too many opponents don't know how to tackle
properly. And to disguise their shortcomings they accuse him of
falling deliberately."
Benítez shares Ferguson's opinion on the need to protect the
game's artists, a requirement he insists is possible through
retrospective video analysis and hopes will extend to his own
players, particularly Fernando Torres, when Steve Bennett takes
charge on Sunday. The timing of the United manager's latest
criticism, however, has prompted his Liverpool counterpart to
identify an ulterior motive.
"Ferguson is clever, that is clear," said Benítez. "After a
difficult game [Portsmouth] he was talking about referees and
before an important game [Liverpool] he is talking about protecting
Ronaldo. The referees, though, have experience and they will know
Ferguson. Sunday's referee has experience and he is strong
enough.
"Ferguson has a lot of experience. If you need to protect
Ronaldo, then you also need to protect Torres and Gerrard and all
the skilful players in the league. This kind of treatment must be
the same for all the teams and all the players. I wasn't surprised
last week to hear what he was saying. I just want to go into the
game with the same situation as the other team."
The Liverpool manager also doubted Ferguson's assertion that a
lack of protection for Ronaldo could persuade the Portuguese
international to take his talents eventually to Spain. "The English
league is more physical than the Spanish league," he agreed, "but
in terms of tactics and players it is more or less the same. Torres
is playing the same football here as he did in Spain, for example.
In England the supporters enjoy a more physical game and you have
to accept that. They also criticise players for diving a bit more
here than in other countries and that is a positive."
Ronaldo reached 33 goals for the season against Bolton, though
Benítez believes he will not be the only potent forward on show.
"Ronaldo is in form but what about Torres? Maybe United will worry
about him," he added. "The understanding between players is always
important, especially up front, and the partnership between Torres
and Gerrard has made a massive difference. It is difficult for
teams to stop them both and we are profiting."
Ah Ben starting his mind games liao... 
