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John Terry feels he has learned from the mistakes of the past and claims there are no problems within the England squad over his re-appointment as captain.

Manager Fabio Capello, who stripped Terry of the armband just over a year ago after problems off the field, has taken the contentious decision to ditch injured successor Rio Ferdinand and return the captaincy to the Chelsea defender.

There have been reports that the decision has caused a rupture in the camp, but Terry claims the players have been offered the chance to voice their concerns and there were no problems.

“The manager pulled everyone together to say I was captain and asked if there were any problems and nothing was said,” Terry said. “If anyone had any problems I would respect them if they came to me.”

An allegation of an affair with Wayne Bridge’s former girlfriend was the catalyst to Terry’s downfall as captain last season and he claims to have learned plenty from the past.

“I am very much wiser as well,” he said. “I have concentrated on and off the field. I have am fully fit as well and looking forward to staying fit and playing well.”

“I am delighted to get the armband back. When I did not have the armband my passion and drive was still there and that would never change. But on a personal note I am delighted and looking forward to leading the team out.

“I know what is asked of me on and off the pitch. Maybe the manager has looked into that as well. I have kept my head down on and off the pith and concentrated on playing well for club and country and have done that for the last year.

“I am not going to be everyone’s cup of tea, as I have read and seen, but it is a decision the manager has taken. I had to respect that when he took it away from me and I did that. I think he has looked at that.”

Terry also confirmed that Ferdinand contacted him to wish him well with the captaincy ahead of England’s Euro 2012 qualifier against Wales on Saturday.

“Rio called me which was a very nice touch and goes to show what a great man Rio is,” Terry said. “We had a 10-minute conversation and he wished me well. He cares about England and said the most important thing was to keep winning.

‘He was naturally disappointed, but said the most important thing was to keep winning.”

He added: ‘I feel for Rio. Even though I’ve got the armband back, I can see myself we’ve got leaders in dressing room. The guys have still got a massive input in and around the dressing room.”

Terry insisted he was ready to deal with the pressure that would come with his re-appointment, and claimed his passion for playing for his country never left him even when he lost the armband.

On Saturday’s opponents, the 30-year-old continued: “I think we can expect a very tough game and we must make sure we match them in every department.

“Our players have played at the Millennium Stadium, which will naturally help – but they have a great spine in the side with James Collins, Gareth Bale and Craig Bellamy. They can pose a real threat.

“For me the most important thing is to top the group and make sure we are there (at Euro 2012). I would love to lead the team into that tournament.”

Just over a year ago Bellamy was a team-mate of Bridge when Manchester City won at Chelsea in the Premier League – and the striker was none too complimentary about Terry in a post-match interview.

However, Terry said: “He is a player I have a lot of respect for in the game – maybe sometimes he’s been misrepresented in certain ways… he wants to win, be it at Manchester City or Cardiff.

“But we must win. Wales have had a bad start, conceding a lot of goals and not scoring too many – but they pose a real threat individually. They’ve got a good young squad.”

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Wales youngster Aaron Ramsey says “it is good to be back” ahead of the country’s Euro 2012 qualifier against England, admitting his lengthy spell on the sidelines was a “frustrating time”.

Ramsey has recently returned to the Arsenal side following nine months out with a broken leg, and his encouraging form has seen him called up for Saturday’s clash at the Millennium Stadium.

The 20-year-old, who has not represented his country since November 2009, is relishing the chance to return to the international fold, claiming he is nearly back to his best.

“I’ve been out for a while so it’s good to be back among the set-up and hopefully get my opportunity to play at the weekend,” he said.

“I feel like I’m nearly there, very close to where I was before my injury. I feel that I’ve put in a few good performances recently and hopefully I can continue that against England.”

The former Cardiff City midfielder revealed how tough it had been to see his promising career come to a standstill following a tackle from Stoke’s Ryan Shawcross, although he reserved special mention for his fans for helping him cope.

“I was out for nine months. It was a bit of a frustrating time for me,” Ramsey told Sky Sports. “Before my injury I thought I was doing very well. I was just about to really kick on and play regularly and I felt good about myself and strong.

“Obviously when the injury happened, your career just stops and is put on hold from that moment on for a long time.

“I sort of dealt with it pretty well I thought. I had my friends and family around which took my mind off football. Another thing was a few people who have previously had injuries like mine were kind enough to ring me up as well and reassure me.

“Obviously the fans as well who sent me all their support messages, things like that helped me through the tough time I was going through.”

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The FA has rescinded Sunderland defender John Mensah’s red card against Liverpool after he appealed the decision.

Mensah, who was booked when conceding a controversial penalty in the 33rd minute of Sunday’s 2-0 defeat, was shown a straight red for pulling back Luis Suarez in the 81st minute.

The dismissal would have seen Mensah suspended for the Premier League game against Manchester City on April 3, but he will now be able to take part in the match.

Steve Bruce told the club’s official website: “We thank the Football Association for considering our appeal and naturally we’re delighted he’ll be available for the game against Manchester City.”

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The parent company that owns Manchester United has announced a loss of £108.9 million for last year.

Red Football Joint Venture – owned by the Glazer family – revealed the figure for the year ending June 30, 2010 in their accounts, which also include a number of one-off payments, according to files submitted to Companies House. One of those was the cost of setting up a £526 million bond scheme to provide the American owners with cash in the short-term to service a number of outstanding debts.

While the previous year’s results revealed a profit of £21 million, payment in kind (PIK) loans that have since been paid off were also a contributing cause for the downturn in fortunes. A lack of notable player sales has also been blamed – in 2010 the club could include the £80 million departure of Cristiano Ronaldo as part of their trading.

United’s own club accounts were published in October and revealed losses of £83.6 million. At the time chief executive David Gill remained upbeat about financial matters at Old Trafford.

“We have money in the bank so there is zero pressure on that, no pressure at all to sell any star player,” Gill said at the time. “We have £165 million in the bank but in some ways we would prefer to have £80 million in the bank and Ronaldo on the pitch.”

Sir Alex Ferguson could be set to rebuild his side in the summer, with Manuel Neuer, David de Gea, Javier Pastore and Jack Rodwell all linked with the club in recent weeks. And, even in light of the financial news, Ferguson has been assured he will have money to spend.

A source told ESPNsoccernet: “There have been suggestions that the club are financially handicapped in some way with the latest accounts of the club’s parent company showing more than a £100 million loss for the year, but they are exceptional circumstances.

“There is £165 million cash in the bank, and even as we stand the club would pass UEFA’s fair financial play rules. No one is saying Sir Alex is going to spend all the cash in the bank, but he is going to replace a number of star players, and that is not going to come cheap. If he wishes to spend £100 million the funds are in place for him to do so.

“As for the club’s finances, Manchester United are on course to break the £100 million commercial profits barrier for the year. The club is best judged financially from the last quarterly accounts of the club, which showed the debt in the region of £500 million, interest repayments of £45 million but £100 million profits in a year.”

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Liverpool have announced the appointment of Ian Ayre as managing director and Damien Comolli as director of football.

Ayre, who has worked as the club’s commercial director since 2007, replaces Christian Purslow, who left the position in October last year. The owners had been searching for his successor since December.

Ayre worked alongside Purslow and Martin Broughton during Fenway Sports Group’s takeover of the club.

Principal owner John Henry told the club’s official website: “We conducted an extensive recruitment search and met with outstanding candidates who sought this role but, in the end, after having worked with Ian and other top executives within the club, we realised that Ian had all of the attributes necessary to lead the club forward.

“Ian has been doing an outstanding job driving commercial revenues and has a proven track record in successfully leading and developing businesses in a number of different regions and sectors of importance to Liverpool FC.

“But importantly, Ian is also from Liverpool and understands the relationships between the club, the supporters and the city. He will play a key role in all of our future plans.”

Comolli left Saint-Etienne to join Liverpool in November last year as director of football strategy. He has been tasked with identifying potential signings and previously worked at Arsenal and Tottenham.

“I am also delighted to announce the promotion of Damien Comolli to director of football,” Henry said. “In the short time that Damien has been at the club, he has impressed us greatly with his knowledge of the sport, his work ethic and his incisive intelligence.

“He is a clear thinker and understands exactly what is needed to form a long-term, consistent approach with the philosophy we all share here. He has a track record of identifying young talent and has already made significant contributions to the first team and academy.

“Damien played a leading role in our January transfer window activity with the recruitment of Luis Suarez and Andy Carroll. These two additions will play a significant role in the future of the club. All of us at Liverpool Football Club who have been working on a day-to-day basis with Damien believe he will be a key contributor for many, many years here as we build a football operation second to none.”

The club’s owners have also officially assumed the corporate name of Fenway Sports Group having initially been known as New England Sports Ventures.

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