Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand has withdrawn his appeal against the extra one-match ban he recieved for making a previous appeal over his suspension for violent conduct. The England captain was given a one game ban by the Football Association for a 'frivolous' appeal he made after being banned for three matches for striking Hull's Craig Fagan. Had Ferdinand's appeal been once again dismissed the former Leeds and West Ham star would have been suspended for the Carling Cup final against Aston Villa at the end of the month. Ferdinand has already missed the two Premier League matches against Arsenal and Portsmouth and will be in the stands again when Unitd face Aston Villa and Everton. It is thought Ferdinand didn't want to risk angering the FA after he was appointed the new England captain following Fabio Capello's decision to strip John Terry of the armband. United boss Sir Alex Ferguson had been angered by the FA's decision to suspend Ferdinand after Liverpool's Javier Mascherano got away unpunished following a similar incident at the start of the season. "The two most experienced referees in the Premier League are Alan Wiley and Steve Bennett," said Ferguson. "They are under the same controls and the same directions. One says yes (Bennett), in the case of Rio, and one says no (Wiley), in the case of Javier Mascherano against Leeds United when he punched the player in the back of the head."