Former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand wishes to see out his football twilight years with the man who bumped him up into first team football as a 17-year-old West Ham trainee – QPR boss Harry Redknapp.
Redknapp is in the process of bolstering his freshly-promoted Premier League QPR side by swooping in on players with experience for the start of his side’s 2014/2015 campaign in the top flight.
Top of his wish list was 35-year-old Ferdinand, who was released by Man United last month and has just agreed to join Redknapp at QPR on a third of the wage he was paid by the Red Devils.
The two share history, having first worked together at West Ham in the 1990’s when Ferdinand was a youth academy player. Redknapp was the man responsible for bringing him through to the first team, thus handing the defender the opportunity to make his success in the world of football.
Ferdinand, who later went on to spend twelve years with Man United and also became a big noise for England – gaining 81 caps over 14 years – is currently away in Brazil working as a BBC pundit reporting on the World Cup.
It is understood he rejected offers from international clubs owing to his desire to return to old boss Rednapp on his arrival back from Brazil.
He will play a major part in plans to build a solid QPR team, one Redknapp hopes to prove strong enough to thrive in the Premier League after a number of turbulent seasons bouncing between relegation and promotion.