English football's scapegoat before a penalty-shoot out has been lost, or a petulant red-card doled out, it may take a minor miracle to extract Raheem Sterling from the invidious position he finds himself in with the British media. With many speculating that Sterling's status as a young, talented and wealthy black footballer encouraging such disdain, Rio Ferdinand isn't convinced.
Seemingly indicative of all the ills that make modern footballers unpalatable to the general public, the Manchester City man is not the first England international to be victimised in such a fashion; David Beckham has had his fair share of battles with the country's red-tops.
It is just this example of Beckham's complicated relationship with the British media that informs Ferdinand's belief. Speaking of the treatment Sterling received in the wake of England's disastrous exit from the 2016 European Championships; "I think some people are just picked. Something happens in a tournament and it just triggers people into saying, 'He's the guy.'
Ferdinand, who represented England 81 times in a stellar professional career, is painfully aware of the racism that pervades the English game; his brother and former Sunderland defender Anton was subject to highly-publicised, racially-aggravated language from former Chelsea and England captain, John Terry.
Recently, he spoke openly on BT Sport about his realisation that English's football battle against racism went deeper than he had initially reckoned.
While he doesn't believe the attention Sterling receives is related to the colour of his skin, Ferdinand isn't under the illusion that it goes without its challenges nevertheless.
Yet, he believes Sterling is more than capable of handling such attention:
What I love about Raheem is that he has thick skin. He’s a hard worker. He’s someone who wants to do well and he’s a learner. And I think we’ve seen that this year. He has been educated by Pep Guardiola, he has taken it all on board and we’re seeing the player we all believed he could be.
He had more talent and more ability and he’s being pushed and coached in the right way and he’s flourishing.
Rio Ferdinand was speaking at the BBC's World Cup launch. Full quotes available here.
