London, Sep. 18 : Sir Alex Ferguson launched an incendiary first offensive on the eve of Old Trafford, insisting that a "cocky" Manchester City had only started the season well because of "soft" fixtures and declaring that if one of his players had behaved like Emmanuel Adebayor last Saturday, he would "take them into a dark room".

Ferguson said. "It was surprising [Adebayor’s behaviour]. I couldn''t believe it. He was very aggressive, the boy."

The United manager also declared that City had to win the league to justify their spending but would struggle to penetrate the top four.

"I think they''ve got seven center-forwards now, which is crazy, just amazing, but when you have spent that amount of money, and the wages they are paying, you have to win the league with that kind of investment and that''s where the difficulty will come for them," said Ferguson.

His only concession to City was that it would go to Old Trafford in a confident mood. (ANI)