England’s South Africa-bound stars have been warned to watch their step tonight – in case Wembley wrecks their World Cup dreams.

And new England skipper Rio Ferdinand last night weighed into the argument over the shocking state of the national pitch by telling stadium chiefs to sort out their priorities.

Ferdinand will lead out Fabio Capello’s team in their last home match before their World Cup opener against the USA on June 12.

But after Blackpool’s promotion hero Gary Taylor-Fletcher was forced off the Wembley turf on Saturday following two pitch-related injuries, he warned Capello’s squad: “The England players have got to be careful – there is a World Cup coming up.

“One slip and it could all be over for them. I am another victim of the famous Wembley pitch. I went over twice on my ankle and the second time was enough to put me out.”

Ferdinand says the FA and Wembley need to review the number of events at the £750million stadium – or stop everything but football being played there.

When asked whether just football should be played at the venue, Ferdinand said: ‘‘I believe that, certainly. It should be a football stadium – that’s what it was built as.

‘‘If there’s things going on there that make it a bad pitch to play on, that hinders the spectacle that is the football match – FA Cup Final, play-offs.

‘‘If that hinders it, maybe a decision needs to be made in that sense. But there are stadiums all around the world that are used for different things and they seem to get it right, so we need to look at it.’’

Ferdinand was speaking with his new-found authority after it emerged he has finally been named officially as England captain for the tournament.

Capello assured the centre-half of his place as skipper – and effectively the starting XI – during a team meeting to allay any fears after his injury-plagued season.

It is a huge boost for Ferdinand, who has been sweating on his place and had not officially been installed as captain since John Terry lost the armband.

Capello has put his faith in him despite his persistent back problems greatly restricting his appearances for Manchester United this season.

The player said: “I’ve been told. The manager said at the time that the vice-captain would become the captain if there are any ­problems or a change.

“Obviously that was the case, but the manager said it in front of the lads this week. He told the lads I was the new captain, and that was nice.

“The manager is the way he is, he doesn’t change. There are no frills, there is no song and dance about anything.’’

There is no doubt that for England to be glorious they will need a strong defensive foundation and, up until recently, the Ferdinand-Terry central-defensive axis has been the bedrock of the team.

But Terry’s problems off the pitch saw him lose the captaincy and his form has also been questioned despite Chelsea winning the Double.

Ferdinand, who managed just 12 League starts, has been plagued by injury this past campaign and, amid all the fears over Ledley King being injury-prone, the Tottenham defender has started more games this season than his England rival.

Capello’s decision to give the armband to Ferdinand, however, would suggest that it is Terry who is more ­vulnerable than the newly-installed captain.

Ferdinand has also hammered home the message that his back problem – coupled with the knock-on effect of a groin problem – will not affect his form or fitness in South Africa.

“It’s been well documented over the last couple of months,” said Ferdinand. “I wasn’t being able to move as freely as I have been able to in the past. My spine was too lose, there was no stability in my spine.

“That’s why I had injections in my spine in the ligaments to stiffen them up. I felt a relief almost immediately. I’ve not thought that I’d miss out at all. I’ve only missed three games since February, so I’ve been training and playing.’’

The United star firmly believes England are genuine contenders and insists they have the best manager in charge this time.

He added: “If we get the manager’s ideas right and put it on to the pitch, we’ll have a chance of doing really well.’’