Eriksson is facing a no-win situation

At the very least Rio Ferdinand is guilty of breathtaking naivety.

A player of his age and experience, employed by one of the world's greatest clubs, must surely have realised the importance of attending a drugs test that was simply part of the Football Association's long-established monitoring process.

The fact that he didn't take the test on the arranged date - he claimed he forgot - has added a nightmare element to an already difficult week for Sven-Goran Eriksson.

The England coach, it is understood, will decide later today not to include the Manchester United centre-back in his squad for Saturday's daunting match against Turkey in Istanbul. A draw will be sufficient to ensure England qualify automatically for next summer's European Championship finals.

Eriksson is already concerned about the fitness of his main striker Michael Owen, who damaged an ankle on Saturday. He must also be wondering how Ferdinand's centre-back partner Sol Campbell will react if found guilty of misconduct at tomorrow's FA hearing. A suspension is unlikely to improve his mood before Saturday's big match.

But it's Ferdinand's involvement in a drugs testing controversy that now threatens to overshadow the build up to a match that, because of a record of crowd trouble, has already established itself as one of the most problematic in the history of English football.

Given the seriousness with which the FA claim to treat the drug problem in football, it would be considered inappropriate by some in Soho Square if a highprofile player like Ferdinand was to pull on an England shirt in the present circumstances. New chief executive Mark Palios has entered the job on a manifesto of being tough on discipline and drugs, here is a major challenge to that involving the country's most powerful club.

Not only does he need to consider England's chances and Ferdinand's individual position but also the moral leadership of the game.