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58 maltatoday, SUNDAY, 31 MAY 2015 FOOTBALL (+356) 800 737 70 Freephone: cabs t minivans t vip transport t luxury coaches t vintage buses 2138 9575 / 9921 5286 info@cabs.com.mt w w w . c a b s . c o m . m t Sport Rio Ferdinand announces retirement from professional football Former England captain Rio Ferdinand has announced his retirement from football THE former West Ham, Leeds and Manchester United central defend- er spent last season at QPR, who were relegated from the Barclays Premier League. Ferdinand, 36, told BT Sport he had decided to bring an end to his career. The confirmation came after a season in which Ferdinand strug- gled to hold down a regular place in the QPR side. Ferdinand was absent for the closing stages of the campaign. His wife, Rebecca Ellison, died after a battle with cancer on May 1. Ferdinand said on BT Sport: "This season I really found out that it was time to hang the boots up and get back in the house and watch other people play the game." Former United and England team-mate Paul Scholes said of Ferdinand: "He was a great player, without a doubt the best centre- half I ever played with. "I would say for a time as well he was the best centre-half in the world. "He was such a pleasure to play with and play in front of. To play in front of him, he made your job so easy." Ferdinand began his career at West Ham, and made his Eng- land debut at the age of 19 in 1997, before leaving in an £18million transfer to Leeds in 2000. He sub- sequently moved across the Pen- nines to join Manchester United for £29.1million, which at the time of the deal in July 2002 was a world record fee for a defender. Michael Owen, who played with Ferdinand at Old Trafford and was a long-standing former internation- al team-mate, said: "What a player he was, absolute Rolls Royce." That was a verdict shared by Trevor Sinclair, who played with Ferdinand for West Ham and Eng- land and said on Twitter: "Congrats big man on an incredible career ..... All the best moving forward #Roll- sRoyce." QPR said: "All the best to @riofer- dy5 following his retirement from football." Ferdinand hailed the "genius" of Sir Alex Ferguson, under whom he won six Premier League titles at Manchester United, as the key fac- tor in his career. In a statement, Ferdinand said: "After 18 years as a professional footballer, I now feel it's the right time for me to retire from the game that I love. "As a 12-year-old boy, kicking around a football on the Friary Es- tate in Peckham, I never dreamt that I would play for my boyhood club West Ham, captain Leeds United, win the Champions League with Manchester United, or re-join my first manager Harry Redknapp at Queens Park Rangers. "I will always regard the 81 times that I played for England, with im- mense pride. These are all treas- ured memories that will last a life- time. "Starting a career, every young man needs mentors. I found mine in Dave Goodwin, the district man- ager at Blackheath, and Tony Carr, the youth team manager at West Ham. They installed in me person- ality traits that lasted throughout my career. I will always be grateful to them. "I'd like to thank Chris Ramsey, Harry Redknapp, David O'Leary and David Moyes who managed me at various times in my career, all the backroom staff who looked after me over the years, and the players that I played with. I would also like to thank the team who managed me off the pitch, Jamie Moralee and everybody at New Era. "Winning trophies over my 13 years at Manchester United al- lowed me to achieve everything that I desired in football. From a young child to today, that was all I cared about. "None of that would have been possible, without the genius of one man, Sir Alex Ferguson. His great- est accomplishment in my eyes will always be how he developed us as men, not just as footballers. He will in my opinion, always be the great- est manager in British football his- tory. "I'd also like to thank and pay tribute to my wife Rebecca and my family, including my mother and father, for their sacrifices, their encouragement and their advice throughout my career. "And finally, I'd like to thank all the fans from all the clubs - for without them professional football would not exist. I will miss each and every one of you on my Satur- day afternoons." Gary Neville, who played with Ferdinand for England and the Red Devils many hundreds of times, said: "Congratulations to @riof- erdy5 on his great career. Best I played with and best pairings I've seen with Vida/JT. Covered me very well too!" Rio Ferdinand enjoyed a stellar career "Winning trophies over my 13 years at Manchester United allowed me to achieve everything that I desired in football. From a young child to today, that was all I cared about." Rio Ferdinand