A DAUNTING task awaits West Ham.

Not only will they be facing Manchester United at Old Trafford, they will also be up against Rio Ferdinand and Cristiano Ronaldo - two players who are in the FifPro Team of the Year.

Ferdinand has been picked as one of five Premier League players to make the team while Ronaldo is the Player of the Year.

Along with Liverpool duo Fernando Torres and Steven Gerrard, plus England skipper John Terry, Ferdinand joins a host of world stars, including Lionel Messi and Kaka in the dream team.

It is a throwback to a similar accolade he received for his World Cup performances in 2002.

Voted for by players from more than 40 countries, the award proves Ferdinand is at the peak of his powers.

Over the past couple of seasons, he has matured markedly and has taken his personal tally to three Premier League titles and a coveted Champions League triumph.

United are currently eight points adrift of the leaders Liverpool after their 1-1 draw at Everton ended a run of six straight victories in all competitions.

As Sir Alex Ferguson prepares for West Ham's visit, he expects Ferdinand to remain at the heart of United's defence for the next five years.

At 29, Ferdinand is about to enter the prime of his career.

And with the added maturity in his game, Ferguson is not surprised in the least his star defender was named in the FifPro Team of the Year.

Ferguson is now seeing all the qualities Harry Redknapp first pinpointed when Ferdinand was a teenager at West Ham.

And the Red Devils boss is confident Ferdinand will fulfil his potential over the next few years.

Best years

'Rio's best years are in front of him,' said Ferguson.

'He is easily going to play for the next five years.

'He looks after himself and he is very fit, so I would expect him to be here for that length of time.'

Many observers have pointed to Ferdinand's recent attack on the WAG culture around the England team during their abysmal 2006 World Cup campaign as evidence of the player's growing desire to take on more responsibility.

Ferguson can see the difference, too, which is why he has been so unequivocal in his statement that Ferdinand will be United's next skipper once Gary Neville and Ryan Giggs finally call it quits.

'Rio has leadership qualities and we are really starting to see maturity in his game,' said Ferguson.

'We always knew that he was good at taking the ball out of defence because he has such wonderful balance and great pace.

'Now we are seeing more edge to his game and more of a contribution in terms of being voluble towards his team-mates. He is much better at that.'

However, as a fan of Italian masters Franco Baresi and Paolo Maldini, Ferguson can also see the same elegance in Ferdinand, which is the real attraction of a man who cost a club-record £29.1 million ($68.3m) when he was signed from Leeds in 2002.

'He has always had a natural composure on the ball,' added Ferguson.

'His pace always gets him out of spots of trouble and he has lovely balance.

'They are three great assets to have in a defender because normally you talk about forwards and wingers being like that.

'All in all, you would have to say the lad has a lot going for him.'

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