Rio Ferdinand to Miss England Friendly

25 Feb 2010

Newly appointed England captain Rio Ferdinand will miss out on England's international friendly against Egypt next week due to a back injury.

The injury has also meant that Ferdinand will miss out on this weekend's Carling Cup final at Wembley against Aston Villa.

In Tuesday's 3-0 victory over West Ham, Manchester United boss Alex Ferguson said that Ferdinand could not be risked in Sunday's final after the centre-back “felt a twinge in his back” while training.

"He's had these before. He won't be playing on Sunday," said Ferguson.

The 31 year old defender recently replaced former England captain John Terry following allegations into Terry's personal life, however, he will not see his first allotted captaincy thanks to a long-standing back complaint which has kept him out for over three months.

"Rio has been training great - there had been no mishaps at all," added Ferguson ahead of Sunday's final.

Ferdinand had been serving a four-match ban but was eligible to play in Tuesday's Premier League clash against the Hammers. The former West Ham defender had an initial three-game ban upped to four after making a “frivolous appeal” against it.

The ban was issued for violent conduct against Hull City during a league match on 23rd January.

The England skipper had not played since the Red Devil's 2-0 defeat to Liverpool on 25th October and fears had begun to mount concerning his long-term fitness.

The encounter at Hull was Ferdinand's first match after a three month absence also due to injury worries.

England will take on Egypt at Wembley stadium on 3rd March, it is the final friendly before Fabio Capellol names his provisional squad for this summer's South African World Cup.

Victor Chandler offer 4/11 odds that England will triumph over Egypt in the friendly, while betfair have currently set their odds at 43/100.

All odds correct at time of writing and are subject  to change