Redknapp: Rio did the right thing

Jamie Redknapp believes Rio Ferdinand did the right thing by pulling out of Roy Hodgson’s England squad.

The former Tottenham and Liverpool midfielder said Ferdinand should not join the squad if he is not capable of training.

Redknapp revealed how he picked up a number of injuries during his international career and felt no-one from the England setup cared about him once he was injured.

“I lost so much of my career to injuries picked up on international duty,” he told the Daily Mail.

“Liverpool fans used to write to me asking why I bothered carrying on when it was the club who were paying my wages. I understood and, though I am hugely patriotic, if I could have my time again, I wouldn’t have gone on those England trips at the expense of my club career.

“My last game for England was a Euro 2000 qualifier against Scotland. I was out injured for a year afterwards and nobody from the FA called to ask how I was.

“Nobody from England cares once you are injured, it’s your club who look after you.”

Redknapp said Hodgson would not want to take a player under an injury cloud into important matches anyway, and pointed to Tottenham defender Ledley King and his involvement in Fabio Capello’s 2010 World Cup squad.

“If Ferdinand comes back injured and jeopardises his United career, he will never forgive himself,” he said.

“Also, Roy Hodgson does not want to make the mistake Fabio Capello did when he took Ledley King to the World Cup in 2010.

“King, who also used to manage his injuries on a weekly basis, was injured almost straight away and Capello was left without a key player.”