Rio Ferdinand has revealed how ex-Manchester United goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar kept his cool after being screamed at during a match.
On Ferdinand’s YouTube channel, the ex-Premier League defender was joined by fellow United star Owen Hargreaves to discuss the issues surrounding their former club following the heavy 3-0 loss by Liverpool at Old Trafford on Sunday.
The pair ended up wondering if the current United players hold each other accountable during the game, prompting Ferdinand to recall an incident with Van der Sar.
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The ex-United centre-half explained how he had furiously berated the Dutch goalkeeper for defensive errors during games, even screaming at him – something that he expected to provoke an outburst from Van der Sar.
However, the 45-year-old claimed that this was exactly the opposite of what happened, as he said: “This story always stays with me. Edwin van der Sar, who was super experienced, older than me etc. â during the game, maybe five or six games in total, things were happening that I wasnât happy with.
“I was screaming at him, going crazy if we conceded the goal, or almost conceded or something like that. I was screaming at him on the pitch.”
The former defender then disclosed how Van der Sar, known for his gentlemanly conduct in the football world, took him aside during training and calmly discussed the matter instead of retaliating.
Ferdinand continued: “He pulled me off the pitch one day in training and said, ‘Rio, can I have a word please?’ I said yeah whatâs wrong, and he said, ‘Rio, youâre shouting at me a lot every game, my family are here, itâs not cool, what do you need from me, what do you want?’
“We had a conversation, I told him what I needed â and we never had a raised word between us ever since that point.”
Sharing how Van der Sar was always professional and didn’t throw a tantrum to be effective, Ferdinand added: “He did exactly what I was saying to him, we came to a common ground, and I was doing what he wanted and it was fine. He wasn’t throwing his toys out the pram deep down all I’m thinking is he speaking to me from a place of wanting us to do better or is it just like his own personal ego?
“If it was his own personal ego, then I’m going over him again. But I’m sure that’s why with Edwin, he understood that it wasn’t a personal thing.”
Ferdinand and Van der Sar formed a solid relationship as part of Sir Alex Ferguson’s winning defence, as they racked up countless clean sheets and trophies at Old Trafford.
The Dutch ‘keeper hung up his gloves at the end of the 2010/11 Premier League season, after six years with the club – winning the Premier League four times and the Champions League too.
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