England captain Rio Ferdinand insists he will use his lack of game-time over the course of the last season to his advantage at the World Cup finals (England 6/1 Outright).
The Manchester United central defender was handed the Three Lions’ captain’s armband when John Terry was stripped of the honour by coach Fabio Capello following off-field allegations.
But it immediately raised the prospect of England’s skipper in South Africa not being fully fit for the duration of the tournament, with vice-captain Steven Gerrard next in line.
Ferdinand, though, reckons the fact he made just 21 appearances for the Red Devils last term will mean he is fresher.
The 31-year-old said: “All being well I’ll be in tip-top condition come the first game. I’m training hard and have three weeks to get into the World Cup groove.
“How can I not be refreshed? I’m used to playing 40, 50 games a season.
“I have not played anywhere near that amount this year, so I will be going out to the tournament in good condition.
“I am definitely buzzing.”
England kick off their preparations on Monday night with a friendly against Mexico at Wembley and Capello has raised the prospect of Ferdinand playing in a back three (England 4/9, draw 3/1, Mexico 7/1).
The Italian wants to make sure he is prepared for all eventualities as he plots World Cup glory for England for the first time since 1966.
Capello will also rest his players who played in the FA Cup final – David James, Frank Lampard, Terry, Ashley Cole and Joe Cole – so it is likely keepers Rob Green and Joe Hart will play 45 minutes each against the Mexicans.
Capello said: “I will experiment against Mexico.
“I want flexibility in my players. My style with England has always been 4-4-2, or 4-3-1-2 with Steven Gerrard free behind the two forwards.
“But with Roma I played with three centre-backs and we have been practising that. I have to study the opponents but we can play different styles and we have to prepare for everything.
“You never know when you will get an injury, or find yourself 10 against 11.
“Sometimes I have changed the style four or five times in a game, so it is important that we have a lot of options.”
England kick off their Group C campaign against USA on June 12 before games against Algeria and Slovenia (11/2 Group C To Produce The Winner).
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