Manchester United defender Nemanja Vidic insists he has a good relationship with manager Sir Alex Ferguson.

Before yesterday's decision to pull out of the FA Cup defeat to Leeds, Vidic paid tribute to Ferguson.

"When I came to England I struggled to adapt to the speed and intensity of the Premier League," he says. "But the manager made me believe in myself. I will always remember one conversation we had.

"He came up to me and said: 'Vida, I brought you to Manchester United because I know you are good enough to be one of the top defenders in the world - and I am never wrong!' "When someone shows that faith in you it is amazing. That is why I owe him so much. The great thing about this club is that there are winners everywhere.

"In Ryan Giggs, Gary Neville and Paul Scholes we have three players who have as much experience as any manager in the game and their winning mentality rubs off on the rest of the squad."