Rio Ferdinand--Five Star--The Biography (22 page)

A few weeks later, Rio rushed to the defence of under-fire teenager Wayne Rooney whose red card in United’s
opening UEFA Champions League Group D Game at Villarreal CF sparked even more criticism of the 19-year-old’s temperament. ‘Wayne has worked very hard on his discipline and improved it no end since coming to United,’ explained a very fatherly Rio. ‘He plays on the edge and that is important to his impact on a game, but Wayne is already being booked less regularly for United than he was at Everton.’

On the domestic front, Manchester United’s opening to the 2005/2006 campaign seemed to be heading in a healthy direction with three straight wins but two draws and a defeat at home to Blackburn Rovers on 24 September were a mighty blow to United’s attempt to keep up with all-conquering Chelsea, who started the season with nine wins on the trot and were already seven points clear of the rest of the pack by mid-October. And Rio couldn’t put a foot right, or so it seemed. When United travelled to Fulham and won 3-2, Rio was heavily criticised for being at fault for both of Fulham’s goals.

With speculation rife that he might be dropped from the England team, Rio once again admitted his own form had fallen below his own high standards. Rio said: ‘You have to show the strength of character to come through the difficult times. I know I have got that and I know my team-mates have it as well.’ Rio insisted that the embarrassing defeat in Northern Ireland would motivate the England team. He explained: ‘Nobody wants to be associated with failing to qualify for the World Cup finals. I cannot imagine the shame of it. There is a huge responsibility on all of us to get England through. It would be one of the biggest disasters in sports history if we blew it and we must make sure it does not happen.’

Others, like former England defensive stalwart Terry Butcher, pointed out that Rio’s place in the team was under threat. ‘Chelsea’s John Terry must be an automatic selection and Sol Campbell has been outstanding for Arsenal since returning from injury,’ said Butcher. Rio certainly had his fair share of problems to sort out.

Eriksson remained typically pragmatic and even indicated that for the moment Rio’s place in the England team was still safe. He said: ‘I know he was criticised because of the two goals against Fulham, but I have seen him in many games this season and I think he is playing well.’

However, by the time of England’s crucial World Cup qualifier against Austria on 8 October, coach Eriksson bowed to pressure from all directions and dropped Rio from the heart of his defence. There was a growing feeling that he had been under-performing for both club and country on at least the previous half a dozen games. Fans across the country applauded Eriksson’s courage in dropping Rio. One of many soccer fansites on the internet summed up the reaction: ‘The call for bold leadership was only a few hours old when Eriksson responded by dropping Rio Ferdinand. Although the Manchester United defender’s poor form demanded discussion, few had expected that Eriksson would axe such an established member of his England team. Yet the centre half has shown such slackness since the 2002 World Cup finals and besides the eight-month drug test ban there have been dozens of misadventures, mostly self-inflicted.’

Chelsea skipper John Terry and Arsenal veteran Sol Campbell were paired for the Old Trafford clash with Austria but, as has so often been the case for Rio, he had a lucky break when Campbell was injured early in the second half and he came on as substitute.

England scraped through 1-0. That evening Holland defeated the Czechs, effectively handing England automatic qualification for the World Cup with the best runners-up record. The media once more lambasted Eriksson for a poor performance but from the players’ point of view, the only thing that mattered was that they had booked their trip to Germany 2006.

Four days later, England faced group leaders Poland at Old Trafford with Rio restored to the side. This time England took control from the start and Rio never put a foot wrong as his side upped the tempo of the game and ended up comfortable 2-1 winners with a greatly improved performance and went to the top of their group above the Poles.

And in November 2005 England secured a gripping 3-2 triumph over long-standing rivals Argentina, with Rio, earning a place in the starting line-up, having to be on his mettle from the outset against the spirited South Americans.

Now the World Cup in Germany was beckoning and Rio was going to have to fight for his place in the England side. Many saw it as healthy competition and Rio had a habit of reacting well to this sort of pressure so, unless he had injury problems, Rio was on the verge of re-establishing himself on the world stage.

T
he 2006 World Cup in Germany was going to be the big test for both Rio and the entire England squad. The media excitedly built up the tournament as a crucial opportunity for England to demonstrate that it had one of its leading sides.

As happens every four years, all fans were dreaming of recreating the thrill of summer 1966 and England’s only World Cup win to date. It had now been forty years since that memorable day at Wembley when captain Bobby Moore was carried on the shoulders of his teammates, complete with Jules Rimet trophy. The nearest they had come to World Cup glory since was in the Italia ’90 semi-finals, curtailed via a heartbreaking penalty shootout. Most experts agreed there had been evidence of a promising resurgence in England’s form during the 2002 tournament, until Ronaldinho’s free-kick (somewhere between genius
and fluke) in the quarter-finals had sent Sven-Göran Eriksson’s team packing.

No matter. 2006 was to be England’s year, or so it was claimed, thanks not only to Rio Ferdinand, but also players like David Beckham, Ashley Cole, Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard. There was also a 20-year-old promising youngster called Wayne Rooney, although his fitness was being called into question.

The England team had qualified in impressive fashion. Only a shock loss to Northern Ireland and a draw in Austria had blotted their copybook beforehand, and their group stage opponents in Germany seemed beatable: Trinidad and Tobago, Paraguay and Sweden. As expected, England would indeed top their group – seven points from the three games – but something about the team’s performance seemed laboured and unreliable.

The opening game against Paraguay in Frankfurt was a case in point. An own goal gave England the lead after just three minutes, and they looked like scoring again before half-time. But they did not, and in the second half of the game, their form all but collapsed. Under increasing and unnecessary pressure, England ended the game with a win, thanks only to the early own goal.

It was the same story with their other two group matches. They only just outranked Trinidad and Tobago. Centre forward Peter Crouch helped to break the deadlock in the game’s dying minutes, before Steven Gerrard ensured a win with a second goal in stoppage time. Against Sweden, a Joe Cole wonder goal made a strong start, but once again England’s momentum fell away in the second half. Poor defending enabled the Swedes to equalize late in the game, and it ended in a 2-2 draw.

Such lacklustre performances began to raise questions
and doubts about their likelihood for World Cup success, but at least Rio Ferdinand’s form had been virtually faultless and England had graduated to the last sixteen. In beating the Swedes in their group, they were able to escape facing their German hosts on the field.

To reach the quarter-finals, England instead needed to beat Ecuador. The South American side had been considered rank outsiders, but their flair, skill and hard work at group stage had surprised experts. They had England on the ropes, only foiled when David Beckham became the first Englishman to score in three World Cup tournaments. The danger of being beaten by Ecuador was over, and England breathed a sigh of relief.

Safely in the quarter-finals, England now needed to outdo Portugal, quite a challenge given its squad, which included Pauleta, Luis Figo, and a young Cristiano Ronaldo. A far tougher game, it proved to be packed with tension. Not only were Portugal constantly on the attack, but an injured David Beckham retired from the field in the second half, and Wayne Rooney was sent off after stamping on the defender Ricardo Carvalho. At the end of an uninspiring game, a penalty shootout was all that could decide a result – and England lost out.

They may have been favourites prior to the tournament, but England’s World Cup luck had once again run out. As a consequence of their underwhelming performance, Sven-Göran Eriksson would be replaced as manager by assistant Steve McClaren. It began a turbulent time in the national side, one which has scarcely abated to the present day. Rio Ferdinand, meanwhile, was not to know that he had played his last ever game for England in a tournament.

At club level, Ferdinand’s career seemed rock solid. Manchester United were in unassailable form during the
2006/2007 season, and ended up winning the Premier League. The following season began in August 2007 with a succession of six clean sheets for United, with Rio forming part of a fearsome defence. This run was only broken on 20 October during a game against Aston Villa, but at least Rio saved the day by scoring his first goal of the season - a deft left foot strike. Within days, he had scored during a European game for the first time, with a superb header against Dynamo Kyiv. Winning 4-2, United dominated the game.

The following January, Ferdinand scored again, this time as part of a 6-0 Premier League drubbing of Newcastle United, but by the spring of 2008, he was experiencing the first of many injury problems which were to dog his career from this point on. In April 2008, he limped out of a Premiership game against Middlesbrough with a foot injury. It suggested he would be unlikely to feature in an impending UEFA Champions League quarter-final against A.S. Roma, but against all odds, he would recover sufficiently to participate. He managed to endure the whole 90-minute ordeal against the Italians, but received three stitches.

Despite a decade of high profile football, cracks were starting to appear in Rio’s well being. The frustrated player was facing a battle against the clock before every game, the big question becoming ‘Will Rio be fit enough to play?’

Even when Rio
was
fit enough to play for United, he could be easily distracted from the job in hand, and could become volatile. Matters came to a head at one Premier League away game at Chelsea in April 2008. After United were defeated, Ferdinand’s fury was such that he swore at Stamford Bridge stewards. Worse, he aimed a kick at a wall in the ground’s tunnel, only to accidentally connect with a
female steward by the name of Tracy Wray. Rio insisted that it was no kick, merely a brush of his foot, but a claim that he had sent her flowers as an apology (a claim dismissed by Wray’s husband) did little to settle the controversy.

However, United boss Sir Alex Ferguson stood by Rio, even in the face of the Chelsea incident. It wasn’t long before it was announced that he was one of three players to sign new five-year contracts, which would keep him at the club until 2013, and which was reported to be worth some £130,000 per week. More good news came only days later, when United faced Chelsea again, this time in a victorious Champions League Final game in Moscow. Rio stepped up to accept the trophy with Ryan Giggs, the captain for most of the season, and described it as one of the proudest moments of his life.

The win in Moscow attracted a positive blaze of publicity in its wake, but Rio took the opportunity to speak out about various issues. Uppermost in his mind was the subject of racism in the game, and he was critical of FIFA’s position. He felt that not enough was being done to punish those who uttered racist or homophobic sentiments on the field. He was especially angry at the lenient punishment doled out to the racist taunts of Croatia who had targeted striker Emile Heskey during England’s 4-1 win in Zagreb. He hit back during a BBC Radio 5 Live interview in October 2008. ‘Croatia were fined a few thousand quid. What’s that going to do? That is not going to stop people shouting racist or homophobic abuse… If things like this keep happening you have to take points off them. Then the punters will realise the team is going to be punished.’

Back on the international stage, Rio had been chosen as England captain in the spring of 2008 by Fabio Capello who had just taken charge of the team. Some had predicted
David Beckham as a more likely candidate, especially as he was nearing a full 100 caps. Others had favoured Steven Gerrard, or John Terry. But it seemed that the choice of Rio Ferdinand came about because Capello intended to rotate the role of captain, until a more permanent, official one was announced. On 19 August 2008, Capello finally revealed the name of the new England captain and, although Ferdinand lost out to John Terry, he was still named vice-captain. Yet Rio was irked at what he thought was an insufficient explanation of Capello’s decision.

Back at Old Trafford, Rio’s injury problems were far from over. Moreover, they seemed to be worsening. He had been absent from a number of games during the 2008/2009 season, and the following season was on the sidelines for months due to a series of problems with his back and knees. His physical condition was by no means the only one of his setbacks either. On 10 October 2009, he made a mistake during England’s World Cup qualifying match against Ukraine in Dnipropetrovsk, an error which would ultimately result in the sending off of Robert Green. Rusty from lack of regular practice on the field, he was criticized by some for even being in the squad at all. Such comebacks were becoming exasperatingly brief. In late January 2010 he was back in the United squad against Hull City, yet celebrations were short-lived. After elbowing City’s Craig Fagan, he was banned for four games.

Better news came in early February, when Fabio Capello informed Rio he would be replacing John Terry, whose England captaincy had become controversial. This was in theory an exciting development, especially given the impending 2010 World Cup, to be held in South Africa that summer, but his persistent injuries would continue to plague him mercilessly. He had already missed much of the
2009/2010 season at Old Trafford because of back and groin problems, and sure enough, his bad luck would continue in the World Cup.

In fact, he was plagued by bad luck almost immediately in South Africa. During England’s very first training session there on 4 June 2010, he was ruled out of the whole tournament when he tore the medial ligaments in his left knee. With an agonized Ferdinand taken to hospital, Steven Gerrard filled his place as captain while Tottenham Hotspur’s uncapped defender Michael Dawson replaced him in the squad. At the hospital, Rio was told he would be out of action for at least a month. He would play no further part in the South Africa World Cup.

‘It is the curse of being the captain,’ said Fabio Capello. ‘It could not have been much worse on our first day. All the players here are important, but Rio is one of the starting players, the captain, a leader.

‘It was a tackle with Heskey,’ he went on, ‘but he was more or less alone when he put his feet in the grass. It wasn’t the fault of the pitch. He felt a big pain in his knee. The other players were upset and they stopped training.’

England failed to progress beyond the second round in South Africa when they were demolished by the formidable opposition of Germany. But not even his disastrous retirement from the World Cup would mark the end of Rio Ferdinand’s run of bad luck in international football tournaments.