Boss Happy At Rio Ferdinand's England Omission

Sir Alex Ferguson believes Rio Ferdinand's omission from the England squad will benefit Manchester United.

Ferdinand, 33, was not included in Roy Hodgson's squad despite John Terry retiring from international football.

Hodgson has apologised to Ferdinand for discussing the defender's future during a journey on the London underground but Ferguson is happy with the situation.

"I'm happy because at his age Ferdinand should be protecting himself as best he can," said United boss Ferguson.

"Hopefully by doing that he will be far more important to me than England."

Ferdinand has 81 caps for his country but was not selected for Euro 2012 for "football reasons", according to Hodgson.