Rio Ferdinand will miss Man Utd vs Athletic Club decider, TNT Sports pundit remains hospitalised

Rio Ferdinand will be missing from TNT Sports’ coverage of Manchester United’s Europa League semi-final decider at Old Trafford on Thursday night.

Manchester United beat Athletic Club 3-0 in the first leg of their Europa League semi-final last week, putting one foot in the eagerly anticipated final, which gives Ruben Amorim’s side a chance to qualify for the Champions League.

Former players like Gary Neville and Roy Keane have slammed United for losing their edge in the Premier League, after watching the Reds lose 4-3 to Brentford on Sunday, but they could still end the season with silverware.

With Tottenham beating Bodo/Glimt in the other semi-final, there’s a good chance this year’s Europa League final will include two clubs sitting in the bottom half of the Premier League.

Amorim will be hoping to avoid any injuries that could derail his team’s chances of success in Europe, but TNT Sports have already suffered a blow ahead of the semi-finals tonight.

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Rio Ferdinand to miss Man Utd vs Athletic Club decider

Although the tie should be over at 3-0, United would be extremely naïve to underestimate their La Liga opponents, despite their three-goal advantage as well as playing in front of the Old Trafford faithful.

It promises to be a big night, but United legend and TNT Sports pundit Rio Ferdinand will miss the game after he was hospitalised with a sickness bug.

According to the Daily Mail, the sickness bug also affected other members of Ferdinand’s family, and he will miss United vs Athletic Club as he continues his recovery.

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Ferdinand issued an update to social media on Wednesday evening, informing followers that he was ‘gutted’ to be missing this week’s European semi-final coverage.

That meant Ferdinand watched Arsenal’s defeat to PSG in the Champions League on Wednesday from his hospital bed, where he will follow the action tonight.

Everyone at United in Focus is wishing Ferdinand a speedy recovery.

It can be hard for some pundits to hide their allegiance to former clubs, but it’s bound to frustrate those in the broadcasting industry who are trained to remain objective.

Ferdinand was called out for celebrating United’s 5-4 win over Lyon in the Europa League quarter-finals by broadcasting legend Clive Tyldesley last month.

After hearing Ferdinand cheering goals from Kobbie Mainoo and Harry Maguire, Tyldesley suggested the former United centre-back was playing up to the audience. He also compared the commentary to something you would associate with a fan channel.

Tyldesley wrote a newsletter on the issue: “Over on TNT Sport, lead commentator Darren Fletcher was playing gooseberry to two former United players that were just loving the comeback. We know this because Rio Ferdinand and Robbie Savage could not only be heard but also seen on ‘CommCam’.

“So, just in case we were wondering if Rio’s voice had temporarily lost the frequency of the commentator’s traditional neutrality, we could watch his fist punching the air over and over in delight. I got the impression that he maybe knew the hidden camera was there. Could be wrong.

“Fletch had been savvy enough to take a deep breath in the wake of United’s equaliser – my wonderful mentor Reg Gutteridge used to call it “thinking time” – before delivering the catchy line “Kobbie Mainoo is the coolest kid in Old Trafford and Manchester United are level”. Either side of him, Rio and Robbie were unashamedly losing their collective cool to welcome us to MUTV.”

Tyldesley added: “Having the judgment and knowledge to read a game doesn’t necessarily give an ex-player the ability to read it out loud to an audience of millions.

“They are two separate professions with their own techniques and thought processes.

“If you are coming from football into broadcasting, you need to be schooled and coached in the methods and disciplines of communication. Your words should count.

“’Oh my God. Oh my God’ is not quite enough.”

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