Harry Redknapp: Rio Ferdinand is one of first names on my list - 7M sport

Harry Redknapp: Rio Ferdinand is one of first names on my list



I have a say

Posted Saturday, October 22, 2011 by The Sun

Harry Redknapp: Rio Ferdinand is one of first names on my list
STAR QUALITY ... Rio Ferdinand

RIO FERDINAND cost Manchester United £30million but has been a priceless defender over the years.
From now on, though, the gossip and the speculation that this supreme player's best days are behind him are only going to gather momentum.

Yet there is only one reason why Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson decided to rest him from Champions League duty this week.

It is because the 32-year-old is still the man for the big occasion.

And tomorrow's derby against Manchester City certainly does not come much bigger.

His absence is not just the here and now. Rio has had problems with injury and is being carefully managed.

I have known he would be something special since he was 14 years old and still consider him to be one of the first names that should go on the team sheet at both Old Trafford and for England — when he is fit for duty.

When I sit and think about it, Rio is the player for any game. Was and still is.

I will not be picking the England team at the European Championship finals next summer.

But if I were, he would be nailed on because of his class and calm on the ball, as well as his athleticism.

There will be loads of superstars on show in the latest derby.

Even so, if anyone can handle the hype and the hysteria of the showdown between United and City, it is him.

That ability first came to my attention when he was no more than 16 and coming through the ranks at West Ham, where I was manager at the time.

We had got through to the final of the Southern Junior Floodlit Cup. It was a two-legged affair and we were playing Chelsea.

I think West Ham had lost 2-0 in the first leg at Upton Park.

Rio then played in the second leg and even that was not straightforward for him.

He had to make his way to Stamford Bridge straight from school! The first team was playing in a fixture up at Newcastle that night, so I could not go to watch him in action.

But not only did Rio play, we actually went on to win the trophy.

It was an important night for him, as he announced himself as a genuine true talent to everyone that evening.

I got some very excited phone calls, the first from my dad.

He had been fortunate enough to be able to travel to see the game and rang me absolutely raving about this young kid Rio.

Not long after, Academy boss Tony Carr called and he was just as enthused.

We had watched Rio grow from this 14 year old, when we could already all see that he was blessed with lightning pace, great athleticism and a great attitude to football.

That would have been a big night for him.

We then sent him out on loan to Bournemouth.

And not long after, I got a phone call from the man who was Manchester United's chairman at that particular time, Martin Edwards.

Someone from United had obviously seen Rio in action at somewhere like Stockport or Rochdale and advised him to get hold of this kid, who clearly had so much promise, from Bournemouth.

But Bournemouth boss Mel Machin told Martin he was ours.

I picked up the phone and Martin went straight to it, asking how much he would cost for them to buy and would we take a million pounds for him?

I swallowed hard and then told him that Rio was not for sale at any price.

He was only 16 or 17 at the time and yet his overall ability was such he was already being talked about as a million-pound player.

I think that tells you everything there is to tell about Rio.

He eventually got to Old Trafford via Leeds — and for a sum that was a lot more than a million quid.

And to this day I still consider him to be of enormous value both to Manchester United and England.



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