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BBC   

Sir Alex Ferguson admitted Nemanja Vidic was lucky not to be sent off in Manchester United's 2-1 Carling Cup final defeat of Aston Villa.

Villa won a penalty when Vidic fouled Gabriel Agbonlahor, but the Serb remained on the pitch despite denying the striker a goalscoring opportunity.

"We got a lucky break, he could have been sent off," said the United boss.

"I think it would be universally accepted they should be down to 10 men," said Villa boss Martin O'Neill.

"It's not a good decision by an otherwise fine referee, it's poor."

Vidic was outpaced by Agbonlahor and when he brought the Villa striker to the ground, it appeared he had prevented him from a clear goalscoring opportunity.

However, referee Phil Dowd - who showed four yellow cards during the game, including one to Vidic in the second half - opted against even cautioning the United centre-half at the time.