MANCHESTER UNITED were adamant last night that “nothing has changed” in the drama over Rio Ferdinand’s contract negotiations, but claims by the player’s agent that talks over a new deal have reached deadlock will have done nothing to convince the club’s supporters of the England defender’s insistence that he wishes to remain at Old Trafford. Rumours are rife that Real Madrid are preparing to move for Ferdinand should the player not accept United’s offer of a club-record deal worth £100,000 a week.

But while David Gill appeared relaxed when questioned about the matter last weekend, the United chief executive need only look at what happened with Steven Gerrard and Liverpool to know that contract discussions have a habit of spiralling out of control when they are not resolved speedily. Indeed, it was with the Gerrard saga in mind that Sir Alex Ferguson recently urged Ferdinand to sign on the dotted line.

Ferguson was only too aware of how the constant speculation over Gerrard’s future strained the England midfield player’s relationship with Rafael Benítez and the United manager clearly has reservations about whether his relationship with Ferdinand can survive many more months of uncertainty.

Ferguson and Ferdinand have been on uneasy terms since the player’s missed drugs test in 2003, which earned him an eight-month ban from the FA, and the Scot believes that the defender owes United a debt of gratitude for the way they stood by him when everyone else was branding him a disgrace.

Ferdinand is thought to be holding out for an extra £20,000-a-week — a deal worthy of the 26-year-old’s status as “the best defender in the world”, according to Pini Zahavi, his agent. United, however, will not relent in what is fast becoming a battle of wills and believe they have made Ferdinand, who has two years left on his contract, a very generous offer.

“No one is having talks,” Zahavi said. “There is no need to speak. He has two years [left on his contract]. There was at some stage an idea [for a new contract] but we could not reach an agreement. But he is loyal to Manchester United and I am sure at the end of the day he will stay.”

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