MANCHESTER — Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand insists he will support England’s Uefa Euro 2012 challenge despite suffering another snub from Roy Hodgson.
Ferdinand reacted angrily on Sunday when he learned he had been over-looked again by England manager Hodgson, who called up Liverpool’s inexperienced Martin Kelly instead of the United centre-back after Gary Cahill was forced to withdraw from the squad with a fractured jaw.
Hodgson claims he left Ferdinand out of his original Euro squad for “footballing reasons” even though it was widely believed the 33-year-old’s absence was due to the presence in the group of John Terry.
Chelsea captain Terry will stand trial in July on charges of racially abusing Ferdinand’s brother Anton during a match against Queen Park Rangers in October and many reports said Hodgson was keen not to select Rio to avoid a potential dressing room rift over the issue.
On Monday, he tweeted: “Just so we don’t get it twisted here . . . I’ll be in a pub somewhere supporting England this summer! Love the lads!” For Hodgson, though, the issue will not go away and he is likely to face more questions at the first opportunity after England arrive at their Krakow base today.
