Ferguson denied Lampard talk

Sir Alex has refuted speculation regarding a possible move for Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard.

The experienced England international is the latest in a long list of names to be bandied about in connection with the champions but the manager was quick to shoot down the rumours at his press conference on Friday.

"Do you really think Chelsea would sell to United in January?" he asked. "There's no foundation in that. Chelsea want to do something in the second half of the season so they want to keep their best players."

There is no reaching for the panic button during the window despite the consecutive defeats to Blackburn and Newcastle.

"What can you get in January?" maintained the boss. "The players we'd like, we can't get. If the alternative is to sign a second-rate player, we don't want to do that.

"Our injuries have led to fans wanting us to sign someone but I don't want to sign a player who won't get a game when everyone's fit because he's not good enough."