Rio Ferdinand: 'Fair play to Raheem Sterling for admitting tiredness'

Queens Park Rangers defender Rio Ferdinand has backed Raheem Sterling after the teenager told England manager Roy Hodgson that he was too tired to start against Estonia last night.

The Liverpool starlet made an appearance from the bench in the second half of the Three Lions' 1-0 win over Estonia in their Euro 2016 qualifier.

Hodgson revealed that Sterling didn't feel as though he was in his best form due to fatigue.

The 19-year-old faced some criticism on Twitter, and Ferdinand has now waded into the debate by tweeting: "Sterling - tired, fair play to him. English players are normally too proud to do that unlike our foreign friends. #FreshWhenItMattersMost."

The player himself appeared to defend himself on the social networking website by claiming that he is "only human".