Rio 'was told it was too late'

13 April 2012

Rio Ferdinand telephoned drug testers 25 minutes before they left Manchester United's Carrington training ground but was told it was too late for him to give a sample, according to reports today.

This claim looks certain to be a central part of the £ 30million star's defence to charges of failing to attend the test at his hearing next week.

It is claimed Ferdinand rang the United doctors, who were with the drug testers, at 2.02pm on 23 September and the testers did not leave the ground until 2.27pm.

Ferdinand, 25, was in the Deansgate area of Manchester at the time but it is reported he told the United doctors he would come and take the test.

"It is crucial that Rio called a full 25 minutes before the testers left. He was in the middle of Manchester and could have got back to the training ground before the drug testers packed up. But, apparently, he was told he was too late," a source said.

Reports claim the testers are supposed to wait two hours from the time the test is due to take place. But Ferdinand's legal team will argue that the player could not comply because he was never given an exact start time.

However, this explanation appears to contradict United's earlier assertion that Ferdinand "forgot" about taking the test. It also does not explain why he left the United training ground after being informed he was required.

If Ferdinand is found guilty of "failure or refusal" to comply with the testing procedure he could be banned for up to two years.

The Football Association have called a crisis meeting with England players to tackle the breakdown in relations sparked by Ferdinand's missed drug's test.

Gary Neville will represent the players at the talks, which are likely to be held before Christmas.

FA chief Mark Palios and new FA coaching director Trevor Brooking are keen to resolve the situation ahead of the Euro 2004 finals in Portugal next summer.

On the field, United got a boost ahead of tomorrow's Champions League clash against Stuttgart.

Paul Scholes has been out with a hernia problem but returned to action as a substitute in United's 4-0 win over Aston Villa on Saturday.

Sir Alex Ferguson was pleased with Scholes's display and said: "It was good to see Paul back and he'll definitely play against Stuttgart."

United have qualified for the last 16 of the tournament but need to win tomorrow to finish top of Group E.

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