World Cup is wide open says Ferdinand

Rio Ferdinand is convinced England will defeat Algeria tonight and go on to mount a serious challenge for World Cup glory.

A knee injury suffered in the build-up to the tournament left Ferdinand a frustrated observer as England could only draw their opening Group C game with the United States.

But the Manchester United star, who was due to skipper the Three Lions at the World Cup, remains fully behind Fabio Capello's side and believes they have nothing to fear.

"We still have a great chance of winning the World Cup," Ferdinand told The Sun.

"No team can claim to be the outright favourites. There is no one who scares us. I'm sure we'll beat Algeria.

"I've played with these players for years and know how good they are.

"Everyone is into the tournament and we can maybe relax and play the way we know we can."

Argentina's 4-1 win over South Korea yesterday and Germany's 4-0 win over Australia in their Group D clash have arguably been the two stand-out performances of the World Cup to date, while Switzerland's 1-0 win over Spain was certainly the biggest shock.

But Ferdinand insists he has seen nothing in the first week of the tournament to suggest England are incapable of going all the way to the final.

"A lot of teams come to a World Cup with an aura about them and, while the Germans and Argentines have each had good wins, I don't think you could say with conviction any team has stood head and shoulders above the others in the first round of games," he continued.

"And, of course, one of the favourites Spain has lost to Switzerland. So I think the competition is wide open."