Rio Ferdinand will consider England's World Cup campaign a failure if they do not reach the final. Ferdinand still smarts when he recalls painful memories of the quarter-final defeat at the hands of Brazil, four years ago.

It was his lowest moment in an England shirt and he is determined not to crash out at the same stage of the competition again on Saturday.

Ferdinand said: "For me personally anything less than the final will be a disappointment.

"No one comes here to get to the quarter-final and be content with that.

"I've been in a quarter-final before and it means nothing when you go out - whoever you go out to.

"Getting to the final of a tournament and being at the last stage, with a chance to pick up the trophy, is the only way I can see it being a successful tournament for us."

Sven-Goran Eriksson's team take on Portugal in the quarter-final, in Gelsenkirchen, on Saturday.

The Portuguese, managed by Luiz Felipe Scolari, beat England on penalties at the same stage of Euro 2004.

Scolari was also in charge of Brazil when they beat Eriksson's men in the World Cup quarter-final, in Japan, four years ago.

Ferdinand missed Euro 2004 because he was banned for not taking a drug test but he played against Brazil in Shizuoka.

Ferdinand said: "That was my most painful moment in an England shirt.

"You sit there, dumb-founded at what's happened, asking yourself what you could have done better.

"You ask yourself questions after questions, like what could I have done to have stopped that goal going in.

"It was a game where we had an opportunity to go on and win it but it didn't happen.

"Sometimes I still think about it but in the World Cup you're thinking more about the next game than what's happened in the past.

"It spurs us on a little bit but you go out to win every game anyway.

"It's more about a desire to win and step forward to the next stage of your career."

The England defender also claims too many cheap yellow and red cards are being brandished in the tournament.

There were 16 yellow cards and four reds in Portugal's 1-0 win against Holland last Sunday.

Ferdinand said: "The referees have been tough and, if I'm being honest, they have probably been over-tough.

"There have been a lot of tackles that have gone in that have been booked.

Portugal will be without suspended midfielders Deco and Costinha on Saturday but Ferdinand expects his Manchester United team-mate Cristiano Ronaldo to be one of their main threats.

Ronaldo should be fit despite picking up an injury in Portugal's win over Holland.

Ferdinand said: "Cristiano is a fantastic footballer and from speaking to him beforehand he's someone who wants to make an imprint on this World Cup.

"I know him very well and I believe he has the ability to be one of the best players in the world in the next couple of years if he carries on improving.

"His battle with Ashley Cole in the last European Championship was one of the highlights of the tournament for me.

"I would envisage another battle of similar quality but Ashley had a fantastic game on Sunday and he's in the right frame of mind and the right shape physically to deal with somebody like Cristiano."

England's other first-choice full-back, Gary Neville, trained with physio Gary Lewin yesterday. He has missed the last three games with a calf injury and suffered a reaction when he tried to return to training last week.

Eriksson hopes to have him fit for the Portugal game as England look to finally find a decent display to go with their winning habit.

Ferdinand added: "People are harping on about performances but if we win every game 1-0 and don't play well that will not be remembered."