Rio came of age after joining Leeds from West Ham, eventually landing Champions League success and a regular England slot following his record move to Manchester United.

Now Anton, who joined Sunderland for around £8m from the Hammers last week, wants to make a similar impact after exiting Upton Park.

"I spoke to Rio a lot before the move," said Ferdinand. "He made a similar move at a similar stage of his career, and he told me it was the making of him.

"He's worked with the gaffer before and knows how much he could help me progress.

"I spoke to him about this at length, and he said straight away, 'That's a move that could take your football to a totally different level'.

"I don't want to settle for being second best - I want to be the best I can possibly be."

The former England Under-21 cap has been earmarked as a full international by admirers during his stint at West Ham, and moving to the Black Cats could be the spark to make the defender reach his peak.

"The next couple of years are going to be massive for me," added Ferdinand.

"They will determine whether I get to the very top of the game or not. I'm looking forward to this new challenge a lot, and it's something I needed to do.

"I was at West Ham a long time, and sometimes you need to take on a new challenge to enable your career to move to the next level. Hopefully, this move will help me do that.

"It was a massive decision for me to make. I've agreed to leave my friends and family, but sometimes you have to leave the nest to push your career forward.

"I'm delighted it's all sorted now. It's been a long summer of speculation.

"I was going here, there and everywhere according to various people, but in the end, I feel as though I've chosen the right place to come.

Great manager, great club, great fans. I'm just looking forward to getting involved and taking Sunderland to the next level."

Ferdinand will play alongside ex-Hammers team-mate George McCartney, who rejoined Sunderland on Monday.

"George McCartney told me what a great club this is," added Ferdinand.

"I talked to him a lot before I made my move, and he was massively positive about playing for Sunderland. As soon as I got up here, I knew he wasn't lying. The facilities are unbelievable.

"I've enjoyed playing at the Stadium of Light every time I've been there, and I've always been impressed by the Sunderland fans.

"I'm just looking forward to putting on that Sunderland shirt and playing for them.

"I know George loves it up here so much, so this is probably going to be like coming home for him.

"To be honest, I was surprised when West Ham let George go. He's a very consistent player and played just about every game last year for West Ham.

"It was very rare for him to have been below par. He was at least a seven out of 10 in pretty much every game he played."

Ferdinand, who should make his debut at Wigan next Saturday, knows more than just McCartney in the Black Cats' squad.

He revealed: "I know quite a few of the boys here. I know Kenwyne (Jones) and Kieran (Richardson), and Nyron went to school with my cousin, so I know Nyron quite well."