Sir Alex Ferguson has hit back at Avram Grant's claims that Manchester United benefited from favourable refereeing decisions in their crucial victory over Wigan Athletic last Sunday.

"I've been expecting it," Ferguson said. "I don't think it's about last Sunday, I think it's about next Wednesday and maybe even next season. I could go on and on about decisions because they're all debatable at the end of the day, we feel we didn't get a lot of decisions this season.

“Maybe when we went to Chelsea we should have been champions before it, but with the season over we can put it on the backburner and now it's about next Wednesday and I think that's why Avram's talking that way.”

The Chelsea first-team coach had claimed that Steve Bennett, the referee, helped United win the title by missing a deliberate handball by Rio Ferdinand and failing to dismiss Paul Scholes after his clumsy challenge on Wilson Palacios.

Ferguson has brushed off the remarks as nothing more than petty mind games as the war of words between the clubs continues before the Champions League final in Moscow next Wednesday.