Rio Ferdinand Soccer News

England defender Rio Ferdinand withdrew from Saturday's European Championship qualifier against Macedonia because of a back injury. Ferdinand pulled out shortly before the Group E match at Old Trafford stadium and was replaced by Ledley King, who returned to action last month after missing the World Cup because of a broken foot. Ferdinand, who hurt his back in training Friday, may also miss Wednesday's qualifier at Croatia. England coach Steve McClaren put Wayne Rooney in the team after the Manchester ...

Rio Ferdinand is used to verbal blasts _ the Manchester United defender gets plenty of them from manager Alex Ferguson. England coach Steve McClaren is a similar type of leader, and he's earning praise from Ferdinand and other players because of it. ``The new manager is challenging players mentally and physically,'' Ferdinand said of McClaren, who took over from Sven-Goran Eriksson after the World Cup. ``If he's got a problem ...

England hasn't conceded a goal in its three games under manager Steve McClaren, and defender Rio Ferdinand said that's a credit to everyone on the team. McClaren replaced Sven-Goran Eriksson after England lost to Portugal in the quarterfinals of the World Cup. The team has since beaten European champion Greece in a friendly, and Andorra and Macedonia in European Championship qualifying games. England hopes to add another shutout when Macedonia ...