Rio Ferdinand to be handed 1-year contract extension

Sir Alex Ferguson wants to extend Rio Ferdinand's contract at Manchester United after resolving his dispute with the defender.

Ferguson expressed fury with Ferdinand at the weekend after the 33-year-old defied his wishes by not wearing a T-shirt backing the Kick It Out anti-racism campaign.

However, the pair held talks on Monday and settled their differences, with the United boss revealing: "I've spoken to Rio. There is no issue. There was a communication problem but it has been resolved."

Now Ferguson is ready to hand the long-serving centre-back, who arrived at Old Trafford from Leeds in 2002, a new one-year deal.

Ferdinand's current contract expires next summer and there has been much speculation over whether he will be offered fresh terms.

But Ferguson, speaking ahead of the Champions League clash with Braga on Tuesday night, said: "Rio can play for two or three years.

"He has different issues from Paul [Scholes] or Ryan [Giggs] in terms of injuries over the last couple of years. He is not as quick as he was but that is not a big problem because his experience is important.

"He is still a great footballer and, even at 33, there is no reason why he can't stay on. We have always adopted that policy of offering one-year contracts, so we will see as the season progresses.

"I didn't even realise his contract was up. You are making me panic."

Source: talkSport