Ferdinand says why Lisandro Martinez wasn't looking for 'tear-up' with Butt and Scholes

Rio Ferdinand claims Lisandro Martinez is a player "who just wants to win" and is good for the dressing room - while doesn't believe he was looking for a "tear-up" with Paul Scholes or Nicky Butt.

Manchester United's fine win in the derby over Manchester City also led to a side show started by comments from Butt and Scholes ahead of the game, saying that Erling Haaland would make easy work of Martinez.

Butt had joked the striker “would pick Martinez up and run with him” like a “dad after school running down the road with a little toddler” before Scholes laughed and said that “he’d score then throw him in the net”.

And afterwards Martinez said of the comments: he said: “No, honestly, he can say whatever he wants.

“I told him already if he wants to say something to me, he can come to wherever he wants. To my house, wherever. I don’t care.

“And I think, for me, I respect the relations when they want to help the club because everyone can talk on the television, but when you see (them) here face-to-face no-one says anything in your face.

“So, for me, I don’t really care what they say. I just put focus on my performance, the performance of the team and I give everything to this club until my last day.”

And now Ferdinand says that Martinez was in his rights to respond if Butt and Scholes had annoyed him.

"I think there has been stuff this week that has been just over borderline, personal, but I’ve spoken to Martinez a few times face to face and online and he’s someone who just wants to do win, get back to the standards Manchester United were at, eager to understand what that looks like," said Ferdinand.

"He’s even invited me into the training ground to go for a coffee etc, he’s a sponge, he wants to learn. The way he plays I think is the way he is, he is an honest character, he is a good sort to have in the changing room it seems and from what I hear from people around the place as well.

"I think he’s in his rights if something has been said and it has got on his nerves and he has come out and said it but the way it has been taken I think out of context.

"I don’t think he’s been sitting there and then saying listen come and meet me anywhere and we will have a tear up, he’s saying let’s have a conversation, let’s talk face to face, if you have an issue then let’s talk about it."