‘One bad game and people says Rio is finished. It’s wrong’

THIS has been a week about statistics, about dwelling upon the past, for Alex Ferguson and Manchester United as, arguably, the greatest manager in the history of British football reached 25 years as the supreme commander at Old Trafford.

Yet, even at the age of nearly 70, Ferguson has always been concerned with only one thing — the future. There may have been 37 pieces of silverware paraded through the Old Trafford trophy cupboard since his appointment on November 6, 1986 but, even safe in the knowledge that the North Stand is now called “The Sir Alex Ferguson Stand” with his own statue to be unveiled outside, the veteran Scot will be interested solely in how and where trophy number 38 will materialise.

All of which leaves the current status of experienced England defender Rio Ferdinand so intriguing as he celebrates a milestone of his own — his 33rd birthday — today.