Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson charged by FA for criticising assistant referee

The 71-year-old has been reprimanded for his comments following the Premier League leaders' draw against Tottenham at White Hart Lane, suggesting the linesman was biased

Sir Alex Ferguson has been charged by the FA for criticising the performance of assistant referee Simon Beck following Manchester United's 1-1 draw against Tottenham. An FA statement reads: "The FA has today [Tuesday 29 January] charged Sir Alex Ferguson in relation to post-match media comments made following Manchester United’s game at Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday 20 January 2013. "It is alleged the Manchester United manager breached FA Rule E3 in that he implied that the match official was motivated by bias. "Ferguson has until 4pm on Friday 1 February 2013 to respond to the charge." Following Beck's performance that day, Sir Alex stated: "I think we should have had a throw-in down our side of the pitch but that linesman never gave us a thing all day. "For me, it was a poor performance by him. He never saw the penalty kick for Wayne Rooney and some other decisions too. "We remember him well from his time at the Chelsea game [in 2010] when Didier Drogba was three yards offside and he gave onside. I think he had a shocking game today and I'm disappointed in his performance, I really am. "I think he has had a bad game and we never got anything from that side of the pitch. We got a bad break." On his charge, Sir Alex recently stated that he believed the FA to be taking him to task unfairly, and that it had more to do with him than the comments he made. He stated: "I just think it is more about me than what I've said. Whether I think it is unfair or not doesn't matter to them really at this point. "That is what I have put in my letter exactly but you know the FA. You never know. It is one of these things. We are high-profile."