England have lost captain Rio Ferdinand after the United defender suffered a knee injury in training session this morning.

Ferdinand was immediately taken for scans on the knee which are believed to have revealed ligament damage which will likely sideline him for a number of weeks. It’s the latest in a string of injuries suffered by the United skipper over the past season with back and groin problems keeping Ferdinand out for long periods. This latest setback again underlines his fragility as a Fantasy prospect…

Ferdinand’s absence from the England squad has resulted in a call-up for standby defender Michael Dawson who is now on his way to South Africa but it’s likely to be his teammate, Ledley King, who directly benefits from Ferdinand’s withdrawal. He will surely lineup alongside John Terry for England’s opener with the USA although worryingly Matt Upson is another option open to Fabio Capello. Although the West Ham man has far from disgraced himself when lining up alongside Terry, the lack of pace in that partnership would be a major concern though.

In Fantasy terms this changes very little. England were always a gamble defensively, with or without Ferdinand in place. The fact that Steven Gerrard will now take the armband could be just fire him up that little bit more, although that could be straw clutching given Gerrard’s sketchy form in an England shirt in previous major tournaments.