Sources on Wearside insist the deal for Gibson, who was the subject of a joint bid of more than £12m for the midfielder and defenders Wes Brown and John O’Shea, foundered because the two parties could not reach agreement on personal terms.

However, Bruce, who played for Ferguson with such distinction, is adamant there is no rift between the two clubs.

He told Sunderland’s official website, www.safc.com: “Sunderland have always had a great relationship with Manchester United, even prior to my arrival here and long may that continue.

“I know Alex is away at present and with the time difference etc, I haven’t had a chance to catch up with him.

“But once he’s back, I’m sure we’ll have a chat and clear things up.”

Ferguson is currently in the United States with his team, and his comments about the Gibson situation were typically forthright.

He said: “Darron was on the point of going to Sunderland and somewhere along the line I think Sunderland moved the goalposts.

“I suppose their job is to try to save money. From what I can gather, they gave Darron an offer and then changed it.

“That annoyed Darron and I think he’s quite right. If you can’t trust them on day one, then why wait until day two?

“Darron was undecided about what to do when we made the group up to come here, and we both felt he would be better staying back.

“If it changed, he would be there, whereas if he came to America and then had to go back, it wasn’t the same thing. He seems to be in limbo at the moment.”