Rio Ferdinand has revealed that former Manchester United teammate Darren Fletcher shared “exactly” what was going through his head during England and Ghana’s World Cup match.
England kicked off their World Cup campaign last week under Thomas Tuchel and the Three Lions defeated Croatia 4-2 in their Group L opener in Texas.
But the Three Lions faced a tricky test against Ghana on Tuesday and England had to settle for a point from their 0-0 draw at the Boston Stadium in Massachusetts.
England’s latest World Cup result has kept the Three Lions top of Group L, with Ghana level on points with Thomas Tuchel’s men after two matches played.
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Rio Ferdinand explains Darren Fletcher’s message to the former Man Utd players’ WhatsApp chat about Carlos Queiroz
Speaking on his podcast, Rio Ferdinand shared that Darren Fletcher made a clear-cut point about Ghana’s display against England thanks to Carlos Queiroz’s influence.
Both Ferdinand and Fletcher are all too familiar with Ghana manager Carlos Queiroz, who served as assistant manager twice under Sir Alex Ferguson at Old Trafford.
Manchester United legend Ferdinand touched on how he agreed with Fletcher’s assessment about Queiroz after Ghana held England to a 0-0 draw in the World Cup.
“Darren Fletcher was messaging us in the WhatsApp group with United [players] and he said exactly what I was thinking,” he explained on Rio Ferdinand Presents.
“This is typical Carlos Queiroz: set them up hard to play against, hard to beat, well drilled, tactically very good.”
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Rio Ferdinand defends Carlos Queiroz’s approach for Ghana after England’s disappointing World Cup result
Carlos Queiroz has boosted Ghana’s chances of reaching the round of 32 at the World Cup this summer after their win over Panama and draw against England.
Ferdinand defended the former Manchester United assistant manager against criticisms of deploying a “boring” style of football in Tuesday’s 0-0 scoreline.
“And they’re maybe ‘boring’ for some to watch, but I think if you think, from a coach’s perspective, he’s got out of his team what he set out to get,” he continued.
“So, you have to respect that.”
Ferdinand added: “Yeah, and they’re [Ghana] through. Imagine what the streets are like in London right now.”
Ghana will face Croatia in their final Group L clash on Saturday in Philadelphia, while England will cross paths with Panama on the same day in New Jersey.
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