FERD IN LINE
My dad won it all with Man Utd and is now famous pundit – now I’m making my own way at Premier League rivals
Youngster aiming to become fourth member of family to play in Premier League
THE name Ferdinand has been etched into Premier League history.
Les was one of the best strikers in the land with 149 goals while cousin and defender Anton racked up 218 appearances for West Ham, Sunderland and QPR.
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But his brother Rio enjoyed the most success, winning six Premier League titles at the heart of Manchester United’s defence under Sir Alex Ferguson.
Ferdinand remains one of the best defenders England has produced - as demonstrated by twice holding the British transfer record and the tag as the world’s most expensive defender.
But now his son Lorenz has ambitions of becoming the fourth member of the Ferdinand family to play in the Premier League - and the first do so as a GOALKEEPER.
And he can count on his dad for plenty of wisdom.
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Rio Ferdinand, 45, came through the youth academy with Frank Lampard at West Ham before joining Leeds for £18million in November 2000.
After helping the Whites reach the Champions League semi-finals and being named club captain, he was controversially sold to rivals Manchester United in 2002 for £29m.
Rio was a key man at Old Trafford - bouncing back from a harsh eight-month ban for accidentally missing a drugs test - and captained the side when they lifted the Champions League against Chelsea in 2008.
The centre-back also collected the Club World Cup and two League Cups in his 455 Red Devils games before joining QPR for the final season of his career.
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Internationally, he racked up 81 caps and went to the 1998, 2002 and 2006 World Cups before missing South Africa 2010 through injury.
Rio made his debut aged 19 and was captain from 2010 to 2011.
After hanging up his boots, the footballer wanted to give boxing a go but was refused a licence.
He has since gone into a successful career as a pundit for TNT Sports and the BBC alongside his own podcast and music label, while his Manchester restaurant Russo has now closed.
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Can you name the famous fathers?
- Our dad's a Man Utd legend - now we run our own gym
- My dad is an Arsenal Invincible - and I played under him
- Our dad is Man Utd Treble winner – now we’re following in his footsteps
- My dad is a legendary manager - and I even dated one of his players
- Our dad won it all for Chelsea - now we're starring for our country
Rio is also a dad of five children.
Three of them - Lorenz, Tate and Tia - were with his first wife Rebecca Ellison who tragically died of breast cancer in 2015.
Rio has since remarried former The Only Way Is Essex star Kate Wright, with the couple welcoming son Cree before daughter Shae arrived in July 2023.
But it is his oldest kid that is excelling on the football field.
Lorenz, 17, is in the Brighton & Hove Albion academy and shining for the Seagulls’ youngsters in the Under-18 Premier League and FA Youth Cup.
Dad Rio recently celebrated his lad signing a management deal with agency New Era Global Sports.
He posted on Instagram: "Our eldest is on his own journey in football.
"Another nice moment signing with @neweraglobalsports , well earned through hard work & dedication.
"It’s a long road full of ups and downs, so the right & professional support is required - so step forward @neweraglobalsports. Love you Lorenz."
Rio posted a picture alongside wife Kate - step mum to Lorenz - with the keeper signing his contract.
And Kate recently revealed the pain of seeing him move out of the family home to live in digs on the south coast.
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She said: “He doesn’t live at home at the moment. He’s living with another family.
“I was devastated when he moved out. It’s a real big thing, I was emotional. I miss him so much. We still see him twice a week but it’s taken a lot of getting used to.”
And Rio also opened up on The Overlap podcast to reveal he had to leave behind his managerial dreams to look after his kids following Rebecca's tragic passing.
He said: "If you're going to be a manager you've got to be there 24/7 there's no time off.
"I've seen it with Stevie and Frank in the little time I've had with them. The change from being a pundit to a manager, their phones are never off their ear.
"They're not really fully engaged because they're probably thinking about a million other things.
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"My kids needed me to be 100 per cent with them, I'm at work but I'm contactable, I can still be there I can still get to parents evenings whereas with managers, they miss all that stuff.
"So I had to make a real quick decision. It wasn't even something I had to think about, really. It was just like, I'm not doing that."
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