Turkish players in hysterics over Rio

Turkish players could only laugh when they heard about the Rio Ferdinand drugs scandal becoming the latest calamity surrounding England's big match build up.

Can Cobanoglu, Turkey's general manager, revealed here that the team weren't laughing at Ferdinand's misfortune - but, rather, at the never-ending supply of controversial tales emerging from the opposition camp.

Asked how the team reacted to news that Ferdinand had been dropped from the squad for Saturday's match because he had failed to take a drugs test, Cobanoglu told Standard Sport: "They could only laugh because all they are hearing from England is stories like this. One day it's injuries, then about crowd segregation then failing a drugs test - or something else.

"This is not our problem. It's England's problem. We don't want to be interested in any of these stories because we don't want to lose any concentration. We want our concentration to be 100 per cent on the pitch."

Clearly, though, the Turks are treating with great scepticism some of the other tales of woe supposedly befalling their opponents at the moment - like the injury concerns about Michael Owen and today's disciplinary hearing for Sol Campbell - and evidently believe that England are playing mind games to distract them.

They have yet to react to news of the alleged England players' strike in support-of Ferdinand. "It is funny really. Of course, if you believe all the news, it's all good news for Turkey," said Cobanoglu.