• Manchester United manager angry over Gary Cahill tackle
• FA rules he was within his rights to criticise Darren Cann

Sir Alex Ferguson is unlikely to face a disciplinary charge over his criticism of the linesman Darren Cann in Manchester United’s 3-3 draw at Chelsea on Sunday.

Ferguson’s joy at seeing his team come back from 3-0 down was tempered by his anger at Cann’s decision not to flag for a foul by Gary Cahill on Danny Welbeck after the United striker raced through the home defence in the first half.

The United manager thought the Chelsea debutant Cahill should have been sent off as he was the last man.

Ferguson said after the match: “They should’ve had a man sent off … [but there was] nothing, no decision. That linesman [Cann], [has] given a penalty kick against us from 40 yards away last year against Liverpool, this year against Arsenal – and he can’t see that? He is all too happy to flag at Old Trafford for penalty kicks.”

It is understood the Football Association ruled on Monday that the Scot was within his rights to criticise Cann, and that he did not question the assistant referee’s integrity with his comments.

The United manager was hit with a five-match touchline ban and a £30,000 fine last March after the same fixture. Then, after seeing his team lose 2-1 at Stamford Bridge, Ferguson incurred the wrath of the FA by claiming Martin Atkinson did not referee the game fairly.

Ferguson admitted after the game on Sunday that his team had lost two points, rather than gained one. United were 3-0 down after 50 minutes but rallied courtesy of two Wayne Rooney penalties and a late header from the substitute Javier Hernández.

United trail the Premier League leaders Manchester City by two points going into a difficult run of fixtures against Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur and away at Norwich City.

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• Home defeat to Aston Villa puts Chelsea out of race
• ‘Fans have the right to boo,’ says Chelsea manager

André Villas-Boas admits he has fallen short of the minimum requirement expected at Chelsea and dismissed the team’s chances of challenging for the title as fantasy, with the manager left to target the more humble objective of finishing in the top four.

Villas-Boas saw his team stumble into the new year in fifth place after suffering a third home league defeat of the season, 3-1 to Aston Villa, with his players departing to a chorus of boos. He does not fear for his own future at the club six months into his three-year contract, though the 34-year-old appears resigned to a frustrating first season in charge.

“The minimum requirement for a club like this is first place,” said Villas-Boas after Villa had secured a first victory at Stamford Bridge in nine years. “But I don’t think the title is realistic. That is fantasy. Our reality has to be a top-four finish, but even that would not be good enough. We have to continue to pursue the best possible finish for the league, and what will be a more humble finish for this club.”

Roman Abramovich set a benchmark by sacking Luiz Felipe Scolari in February 2009 when Chelsea’s position in the top four appeared to be under threat, though the owner, who is celebrating the new year in the Caribbean, has privately pledged his support for the incumbent and charged him with reinvigorating this squad. That is proving a painful process.”The fans have a right to show their disappointment,” said Villas-Boas, who hopes to add Bolton’s Gary Cahill to the ranks early next week. “Their away support has been magnificent. Their home support is improving. They know they can make a difference and we need them, but there is no running away or making excuses.

“We have lost a big opportunity in the last four games to shorten the gap to the leaders. We would have been in the running for the title if we’d had a better December. The booing is the most valuable criticism we have. It is acceptable and we take on board.”

Villas-Boas did express exasperation at the schedule demanded of his team, with Chelsea forced to play four times in 11 days while other contenders – principally Manchester United – have been granted slightly more time to recover. “Every single club should have the same programme,” he added. “It should be the same for everybody, and it’s not fair the way it’s split at the moment. I know the demands from television are high, but the players will go through physical strains that will undermine their careers and ambitions at Euro 2012, and their clubs’ objectives. This is a very difficult situation.”

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• Villas-Boas insists Torres is performing well for Chelsea
• ‘He’s one of our best suppliers of assists,’ says manager

André Villas-Boas has insisted that Fernando Torres has been worth the British-record £50m fee paid to Liverpool to secure his services last January and believes he can still rediscover the goalscoring form of his early days in the Premier League.

Torres is expected to start Sunday’s game against his former club at Stamford Bridge having shown only flashes of form during his spell at the London club. Villas-Boas pointed to the 27-year-old’s recent all-round contribution as cause for optimism, and a burst of four goals in as many games in the autumn as evidence of improvement, though the Spaniard has still to justify the size of the fee required to prise him from Anfield at the turn of the year.

Yet, when asked if Torres was worth that amount, and if he would pay a similar sized fee now to sign him, Villas-Boas replied: “Of course. Of course I would. In a career or a person’s life, you have better moments and worse moments. At the moment, Fernando’s best moments in terms of goalscoring were the Liverpool days. That does not mean those days won’t arrive in this club, and that does not mean that, at the moment, he is not performing for the team, because he is.

“Isolate the last four months with the goals he’s scored [four in seven games in all competitions] and it isn’t bad. A striker is not just there to put the ball in the back of the net. He’s there to perform and create. We create enough opportunities if we’re winning or losing games and, at the moment, our best goalscorers are our two midfielders [Frank Lampard and Ramires]. But for them to finish, someone is creating. The team is creating, so I’m happy at the moment.

“Fernando helped create our goal in Genk – that was a one-two [with Ramires] – so it’s not just a question of numbers and goals scored. It’s about how you make your team perform around you. He’s one of the best suppliers of assists at the club, with four or five this season. He’s assisting people and the team and getting wins out of that. I think Fernando has picked up from last season, not only with his form but physically and also with his availability and movement for the team. He’s been back to his old sharpness, and goalscoring, and we’re pretty happy with the way he’s performed.”

Raul Meireles, another player plucked from Liverpool, is also expected to start Sunday’s game as Chelsea plunge into a seven-match run, culminating in the visit of the leaders Manchester City to south-west London in mid-December, that will go some way towards shaping their Premier League challenge, as well as their continued participation in the Carling Cup and Champions League. “Bearing in mind the calendar, it’s important the team returns to the good standard we set in the beginning,” said Villas-Boas. “It could be an ideal time to do that because we play teams like Liverpool, Newcastle and City.”

The Portuguese has denied a Football Association charge over his post-match criticisms of the referee Chris Foy after Chelsea’s defeat to Queens Park Rangers on 23 October but has opted against seeking a personal hearing with the governing body. “I have other things to do,” he added. “I’m not worried. I understand that a charge cannot be taken lightly. This is the maximum body of English football and I respect that, but it doesn’t mean I agree with it and it doesn’t mean I have to defend it to death. The charge implies that I was calling the referee biased or questioning his integrity. I was not.”

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