Fergie gets confidence vote

Sir Alex Ferguson last night received the unequivocal backing of his board at Manchester United - but has not seen the last of his old adversary John Magnier.

Old Trafford chief executive David Gill reacted to last week's Champions League exit and Sunday's 4-1 thrashing by neighbours Manchester City by predicting that Ferguson will once again bring glory to United.

But Sportsmail understands that the settling of Ferguson's dispute with major shareholder Magnier over the stud rights of the racehorse Rock Of Gibraltar will not stop the Irishman seeking representation on the United board by the end of the season.

Ferguson and Magnier finally signed an agreement entitling the United boss to £2.5million worth of the stallion's stud value on Friday night and that cash will be paid up front and tax free to the United boss.

But any hopes that Magnier, whose Cubic Expression company own 29 per cent of United's shares, will now take less interest in the club are unfounded. There have not been any direct discussions with Gill and his colleagues yet, but he could well have a representative on the plc board within weeks.

Last night, Gill sought to concentrate solely on events on the field and refused to countenance suggestions that the row with Magnier has affected United's performances.