'I'm sorry' says Anton Ferdinand after freak goal hands Arsenal point at Sunderland

Anton Ferdinand has apologised to the Sunderland fans after his mistake led to Arsenal's freak goal at the Stadium of Light. Ferdinand's hesitation allowed Cesc Fabregas to block his attempted clearance which ballooned over the stranded Black Cats keeper Simon Mignolet and into the net - handing the Gunners the lead. Darren Bent's late equaliser salvaged a point for Steve Bruce's side, and spared Ferdinand further humiliation after what the defender described as a 'freak' goal. My fault! Fabregas's goal was certainly a freak occurrence 'It was one of those moments when you want the ground to swallow you up, it was that embarrassing,' he said.'If I got shut down like that five times this season, it wouldn't happen again. I was devastated, not just for myself but for the fans and the lads.'I should have got on the ball quicker. It was a freak goal. I had to make sure it didn't affect my game.'The 25-year-old has only recently returned to the first-team after falling out with boss Bruce following over his attitude.But the former West Ham star paid tribute to his manager for keeping faith in him and allowing him to play. Saviour! Darren Bent's late equaliser spared Ferdinand's blushes'I have repaid him with performances on the pitch and hopefully that will continue,' Ferdinand added.'I don't know how close I was to leaving. The manager has been good to me and all I can do is thank him for his maturity.'A lot of managers would not have given me a second chance, so I have a lot of respect for him for that. I need to keep repaying him on the pitch, which is how he would want me to repay him.' Wenger set to face FA rap after pushing match official at SunderlandSunderland 1 Arsenal 1: Wenger's ref rage as Bent strikes with last push Jamie Redknapp: Super Chelsea are a mixture of Arsenal and Man UnitedSUNDERLAND FC

Source: Daily_Mail