Ferdinand: I'm pleased just to be back in the squad

No triumphalism, no bravado and not a hint of self-satisfaction.

Instead Rio Ferdinand regained the England captaincy with humility as he acknowledged that great swathes of the country wanted Steven Gerrard to keep it - while he was lucky just to be in the squad.

The often-injured Manchester United defender admits he had doubts as to whether he would even be picked last week, having played so few times for his club.

But now that he is back - and has the armband again - Ferdinand is determined to prove he is worth his place.

He said: “I’ve not played many games. I’d played three or four before this squad was announced.

“So you just hope to be picked. But you never expect to get into the squad. You can’t count your chickens.

“It’s a great moment when you’re picked.

“Now I’ve got to go out there and play. People can only judge you when you play games. I’ve not done that in the last couple of years. I have to build up my stock and go from there.

“But I don’t think about myself personally. I think more about the team. If the team’s successful, the accolades will come to the individuals. It’s about the collective unit, the team, not the individual.”

While doubts about Ferdinand’s future raged over the past four months - the Manchester United star has featured in less than half of England’s games under Fabio Capello - Gerrard’s standing in the role has gone from strength to strength.

Not only did the Liverpool skipper lead with his performances, including two goals in the come-from-behind friendly win over Hungary back in September.

Gerrard was also dealing head-on with the full force of the nation’s anger over England’s worst World Cup ever. And the midfielder dealt admirably with questions about the indiscretions which appear to have affected Wayne Rooney’s form for club and country.

Add to that the fact that Match of the Day pundit Alan Hansen has called for Ferdinand to retire from international football because of his poor injury record and it easy to see why the decision to return the armband to Rio has raised so many eyebrows.

Thirty-one-year-old Ferdinand, however, has insisted he will never follow the likes of Paul Scholes, Paul Robinson, Wayne Bridge and Emile Heskey by giving up on his country.

Holding court in dressing room Four of Wembley Stadium, he said: “You can’t retire from England. I can’t. You have to respect other people’s decisions, but I actually love playing for England.

“To stop doing that for me, personally, would be taking a big chunk out of my footballing life. I love playing for Man United, and I’m thankful for that every morning when I wake up.

“But I do for England, too. Unless I’m physically incapable of doing it, it’s something I wouldn’t consider.

“Between me and Steven, you’ve got two very experienced players who have worn the shirt many times. There will be people in his camp and others in mine.

“Opinions are part and parcel of this business. But there are no hard feelings. We’re both mature enough to know the main point and goal of this side is to be a successful team.

“He’s a leader, I’m a leader. The manager had to pick one of us. Luckily for me, he picked me. But I thought Steven did a really good job.

“In the first two qualifiers we had two good results and he played really well. You get judged more in this game on what you do on the pitch, not what you do off it in terms of answering questions.

“He raised his game: he played a more central role, maybe that’s something to do with it. But he played very well and long may that continue.

“On the pitch you’re judged on your behaviour and the way you carry yourself. Bobby Moore is a shining light of that. It helped him winning the World Cup, to do that, but he did it with pure grace.

“You’d like to do that and follow in those footsteps. You have a big responsibility captaining your country. This country holds the captaincy in such high regard. You’re looked at in such high regard and you have to lead by example. I’ll be looking to do that.”

Ferdinand last played for England in the 2-1 World Cup warm-up win over Japan back in May. He had been all set, after a season interrupted by injury, to end the campaign leading his country in South Africa.

Then disaster struck as, in a freak injury, he damaged knee ligaments colliding with team-mate Emile Heskey in training.

Since then it has been a long road back with Ferdinand featuring in just four of his club’s 11 games so far this season and not at all for Capello.

Injuries to Phil Jagielka and John Terry have eased the decision-making process somewhat for the Italian but Ferdinand still maintains he has work to do to reach the heights that previously saw him feted as one of the best defenders in the world.

The increased scrutiny of his activities has even seen his many commercial interests criticised. Yet Ferdinand is not frustrated. He added: “It comes with the job. People get uptight about it. I’m not stupid.

“I’ve been injured and have been out for a while, so I have to prove myself again. I’ve been at the top level for 12 years, with people saying great things about me here and there, but I’ve got to do things again and prove myself. That’s not a problem for me.

“It’s weird seeing it. But I’m putting more time in on the training ground now than I’ve ever done in my life so it doesn’t quite add up.

“If people came to Carrington and saw me, and a lot of other players, and the regimes we’re on, they’d re-evaluate what they’re saying. The stuff I do off the pitch is stuff I enjoy, but it doesn’t consume much time. In terms of other sportsmen, the time it takes is very small in comparison.”