Anton is confident of a Ferdinand double act

11:05am Wednesday 15th October 2008

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ANTON Ferdinand believes he could soon be lining up alongside his brother Rio in the England team. And Sunderland’s record defensive signing does not feel his move from London to Wearside harmed his aspirations of winning senior national honours.

“I can see it being in my grasp in the next year or two.

I’m only 23 and I want to play for England. But the only way that will happen is if I do well for Sunderland and that’s my main concern,’’ he said.

“I don’t think it will harm me that I’m playing here.

Football is on TV every week so I’m sure Mr Capello will get videos sent to him, or he watches Football First like we all do.

“I’ve always been told that whenever you’re playing a game, you never know who’s watching but there’s always someone watching. That was something my dad said to me.

So it doesn’t really bother me whether Mr Capello is seen at games or not because he’ll know how players are playing.’’ The former England U21 defender was among the Wembley crowd on Saturday to watch his older brother captain his country to a 5-1 victory over Kazakhstan.

“It was a proud moment to see him get that armband and to see that all that hard work has paid off for him,’’ he admitted.

“For me I think it was a long time overdue.

“People might think I would say that because he’s my brother, but for me he’s the most consistent England player since the 2002 World Cup.

“It wasn’t a fluke for Rio. It shows the mental strength that he’s got – to come back from the amount of knock backs he’s had from people like the FA.

“Every time he gets a knock back he comes back ten times stronger. People might think he’d crumble but he never has. He’s always enjoyed proving people wrong.”

But the Sunderland defender, who won 17 caps at Under- 21 level, knows exactly what’s required if he’s going to challenge his brother, John Terry or Matthew Upson for an England centre-back berth.

“Experience,’’ he stated.

“Experience in big games is what I need. I’m only 23 and I’ve played in big games but I’m talking about Champions League games and playing in Europe.

“But I think the biggest thing for me is consistency. I think my biggest downfall is that I’ve been inconsistent in the past.

“I need to be consistent through a season and, touch wood, not to have injuries either.”

From his vantage point at Wembley, Ferdinand witnessed, at first hand, the England fans’ booing of Ashley Cole following the Chelsea left-back’s defensive howler.

And he feels the crowd were too harsh.

“The supporters have their opinion and they have the right to express it as they pay to come to games,’’ he insisted.

“If they don’t like what they see then fair enough.

“But I think what happened with Ashley Cole was out of order. If his mistake cost England the lead then fair enough, but we were winning 2-0 when it happened.

“England are under so much pressure as it is from the media, so the last thing they need is the fans getting on their back.”

But Ferdinand is happy to be the centre of attention at the Stadium of Light.

“At West Ham I was the kid who came through the ranks but here I’ve been brought to the team to make them better,’’ he said.

“I was saying to my girlfriend and to my family that it’s mad because I’m not used to getting the loudest cheer.

Now when my name gets called I’m getting potentially the loudest cheer and it’s crazy. But it’s a great feeling.”