Rio Ferdinand: Manchester United defender retires from England

 England defender Rio Ferdinand has announced his retirement from international football.

The Manchester United player, 34, who won 81 caps, said he wants to concentrate on his club career.

"After a great deal of thought, I have decided the time is right to retire from international football," he said.

    1997: Makes England debut v Cameroon at Wembley
    1998: Named in squad for 1998 World Cup finals but does not play
    2000: Left out of Euro 2000 squad
    2002: Scores first England goal in 3-0 win over Denmark at 2002 World Cup
    2004: Banned for eight months after missing a drugs test
    2006: Plays five games at World Cup in Germany
    2008: Captains England for first time in defeat by France in March - loses out to John Terry in battle for permanent skipper role
    2010: Terry is stripped of captaincy and Ferdinand is given the armband but injury rules him out of the 2010 World Cup
    2011: Makes his 81st appearance in a Euro 2012 qualifier against Switzerland
    2012: Left out of England's squad for that summer's European Championships
    March 2013: Recalled for World Cup qualifiers against San Marino and Montenegro before later withdrawing
    May 2013: Announces retirement from international football