Fergie got to the ref, rages Rafa Benitez

Rafa Benitez accused Sir Alex Ferguson of trying to influence referee Howard Webb as Manchester United stormed to the top of the Premier League.

On the eve of the game Fergie claimed the FA and officials were biased against United, while Liverpool received an easy ride from the game’s governing body.

And after United were awarded a controversial penalty which saw them equalise before going on to win, Benitez claimed Fergie had tried to get inside Webb’s head.

“The refs are professional but we know about the influence of Sir Alex in everything,” he said. “I think Howard is a very good referee.

“There have been decisions against us in the past but he’s professional. But the penalty made a big difference.

“One situation changed everything. I’ve seen three replays and the last one was very suspicious. There is maybe contact but the way Valencia fell down was strange.”

Asked if Valencia dived, Benitez said: “Yes, I think so. But it’s not clear.”

United boss Fergie was incensed Javier Mascherano was not shown a straight red card for denying a clear goalscoring opportunity.

“I thought it was a red card,” said Fergie. “There was no way Jamie Carragher could have got across to stop Valencia from shooting.

“It was a penalty but the law of the game is that if you stop a player with a goalscoring opportunity, it’s a red card – but not today.

“He tugged him and obviously I think the referee is right. He’s got to play the advantage, he was right through on goal, he did bring him down.

“But it wasn’t until he was inside the box that he brought him down. So I think that was correct.”

Fernando Torres gave Liverpool an early lead before Wayne Rooney equalised from the spot and Ji-Sung Park grabbed the winner on the hour.

United midfielder Darren Fletcher said: “We know we have to put a run together if we want to win the title and we did that today.”