Manchester United

Rio Ferdinand upset Sir Alex Ferguson overlooked him for Man United's captaincy

By Danielle Joynson, Staff Reporter | 13 October 2015

Rio Ferdinand admits that he was disappointed not to have been given the Manchester United captaincy by Sir Alex Ferguson during his 12-year spell at the club.

Former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand has admitted that he was upset by Sir Alex Ferguson's decision not to give him the captain's armband during his 12-year spell at Old Trafford.

The centre-back, who retired from football in the summer, was stand-in skipper for the 2008 Champions League final, but lost the honour when Gary Neville returned to fitness.

"Sometimes there's situations during your career you think, 'am I getting the credit I feel I deserve?' But at the same time that is one of the things that maybe pushed me on to keep improving year in, year out, to sustain and stay at that level for all them years," Ferdinand told CNBC.

"I think I needed, as a person, for something to try and get to and grasp onto. If I had everything at one time, it might have been detrimental to my growth, maybe."

Ferdinand revealed that Ferguson recently told him that he overlooked him for the captaincy because he feared that the defender would have "gotten carried away".