Captain Rio Ferdinand looked slightly nervous as he fidgeted with his fingers in a team photo taken as the squad boarded the plane.The England squad jetted off to South Africa yesterday to begin their bid to bring the World Cup back home.
Fabio Capello's 23-man squad left Heathrow for Johannesburg at 9pm last night and are due to touch down at 11am this morning after an 11-and-a-half hour flight.
They will then continue their journey to their World Cup base at the Royal Bafokeng Sports Campus in Rustenburg.
Flanked by beaming cabin crew, manager Capello wore a serious expression, perhaps in anticipation of the task ahead.
But before boarding the plane, Ferdinand gave a clear message that the squad would return with no regrets.
'We are going to be doing our utmost to try and bring this Cup back,' he said.
'We are not there to finish second or get into the semi-finals and think that we did a good job because we got past the quarters. We are there to try and win it
'It's definitely about not coming home with any regrets. I think there have been too many times in the past when that has been the case.'
The Manchester United defender also said he believed the level of experience in this World Cup squad, who average 39.1 caps each, would stand them in good stead.
A shock omission from the final squad was Arsenal player Theo Walcott.
The winger was regarded as a certainty for the finals but Capello instead opted to plump for Aaron Lennon and Shaun Wright-Phillips.
Walcott said: ‘He (Capello) said he was sorry but I hadn’t made the squad and I wouldn't be going to the World Cup.
'It's hard for me to take just like it's hard for everyone who missed out. It's out of my control. There's nothing I can do about it now.
World Cup hopefuls: Capello breaks into a smile as Ferdinand looks pensive before boarding the plane ‘I am very disappointed not to be included in the squad but completely respect Mr Capello’s decision.
'I would like to wish the team the best of luck and hope they have a really successful tournament.’
England have nine days of training in South Africa before they face the United States in their opening Group C match in Rustenburg on June 12.
The training HQ is eight miles from the the Royal Bafokeng Stadium in Phokeng.
Capello was heavily involved in the rebuilding of the multi-million pound training base.
Rustenburg is 1500m above sea level and England's stars have undergone specialist altitude training to cope with the conditions.
source :dailymail
