Rio praises Vidic effect

Rio Ferdinand has praised his Man Utd defensive partner Nemanja Vidic, believing the partnership they have formed in defence is one of the most productive he has ever played in.

Ferdinand told the Daily Mirror: "It's probably been the most productive partnership I have had because we've been playing week-in, week-out together for the last 18 months.

"I've never really had that long playing with the same partner. At Leeds I played with Dominic Matteo and Jonathan Woodgate, but I never had the longevity I've got with Nemanja. I never previously had a situation where I could get to know my defensive partner's game and he could get to know mine until now.

"If you get time to develop a partnership and understanding with someone, both your qualities will come out and that's hopefully what we're seeing now.

"When I first joined United five years ago, I always said that as soon as we got a settled back four we could build from there, and that's what we've got now."