THE first time I went to Elland Road as a coach with Manchester United, Sir Alex Ferguson told me about the kind of reception we could expect, and he was not far wrong with his warning. This morning, when the United coach pulls up at the ground, Rio Ferdinand will go through the same sort of experience.
Despite the manager’s warnings, that first visit — April 1999, I believe it was — still took me by surprise. “Very passionate” is probably the most delicate way I can think of describing it.
Everything at this level in football is a “test”, and this is certainly going to be one for Rio today. He has made some brave decisions already in his short career: to leave West Ham, and certainly to leave Leeds — a decision that guarantees him a hostile reception at Elland Road today. Despite all the build-up and attention, though, I expect him to perform as normal. I do not think it will get to him in the slightest. He is a strong character and the type who can actually turn that confrontational situation to his advantage. Such is their confidence in their ability, and also their confidence in having made the right career decisions, that players like Rio adopt a sheer bloody-minded “I’ll show them” mentality.
It is going to be a very, very interesting situation as all eyes will be on him, and rightly so, because if you aspire to be one of the world’s great players, these are the situations you have to handle.
As a manager, trust is a huge thing in games like this. That’s why United paid such big money for him, because they trust him to handle these occasions. For United, games against Leeds are all about emotional control. It’s about matching the passion of the fans and opposition but staying in control because, if you lose that, you invariably lose a man and, often, the game.
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That was the thing we emphasised this week before our derby match with Sunderland and what Sir Alex will be stressing today — discipline and control. It is something we talk about a lot but also something I work on with our players in training. Little things like refereeing badly in five-a-side matches — usually, not so much deliberately but because I’m a useless ref! — can wind up your players and show them how easy it is to lose your control and discipline.
That tactic also makes other players aware of how easy it is for their team-mates to become embroiled in situations where they lose their heads. You are looking for good leadership on a football field, individuals who can recognise these situations and defuse them. Rather than worry about Rio today, I think Sir Alex will look for him to be one of those leaders. That is one of the sides of Rio’s game that has developed in the years I have known him, so much so that I think he will be a future captain of not only Manchester United, but England. He has that potential.
When Rio was at West Ham, he was obviously a tremendous talent but the word used when talking about him was always “potential”. He was prone to lapses of concentration, which led to errors, which led to those mistakes being highlighted by critics.
Defending at the very highest level is all about concentration. That may be the most important attribute in a defender. I thought Leeds were brave in paying £18 million for him, but going there, where the expectations were much higher, saw a maturity come into his game, an air of seriousness. At West Ham he was developing, at Leeds he developed into a world-class defender.
I remember when Peter Taylor and I took England to Italy for a friendly in 2000 and we realised then what an extremely good player he was. For me, he has everything; a defender’s checklist of skills — good in the air, quick, strong, he reads the game well, comfortable coming out with the ball, can pass any range.
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He has also developed a new side to his game in the years I have known him, he is now a “talker”. He has become a leader, and added that essential ingredient — concentration.
I thought leadership was something Manchester United needed at the back and, in a summer where there was not much money in the game, they had to pay big money for it. Even at £30 million, it was a good decision by United as I don’t believe there is a better developing defender in the world today. Rio was tremendous in the World Cup, very good in the squad, a bubbly character with a great sense of humour and, in such a young squad, one who gets on with everybody, whatever their age. He has that perfect balance between being relaxed off the field and serious on it, very good to work with.
But his most impressive attribute for me was his desire to learn and improve. Ultimately, that is why he made the decision he made in the summer because he felt — as Diego Forlán did when he joined United instead of us last season, in fact as anybody would feel — that he wanted to be playing on the biggest stages, like the Champions League.
Rio moved precisely for occasions like the one he faces at Elland Road today.