QPR's Anton Ferdinand has declared he will not be fazed by any abuse dished out by the Chelsea fans when they meet on Sunday.
Former Sunderland defender out to play fair in derby
QPR's Anton Ferdinand has declared he will not be fazed by any abuse dished out by the Chelsea fans when they meet on Sunday.
The 27-year-old will play at Stamford Bridge for the first time since he accused Chelsea captain John Terry of racially abusing him.
Terry will now face a criminal court case in July and has maintained his innocence since the accusations arose.
Yet for Ferdinand, the inevitable media scrutiny that will accompany this match is secondary to him, as Rangers scrap for the points to keep them in the Premier League.
Stick
"There is a big rivalry between the two clubs anyway but, with everything that has happened, I know there will be some fans targeting me," he told
London Evening Standard Sport.
"The Chelsea fans believe what they want to believe. They have their own view on what's gone on and if they are going to give me stick, that's their problem.
"All I can say is that it won't upset my game. If they think that's what's going to happen, then they have got another thing coming."
The two teams met in the FA Cup back in January and the Football Association decided to cancel the pre-match handshakes and the Premier League has taken the same approach.
Handshakes
However, for the former West Ham and Sunderland defender, shaking hands is not an essential part of the game.
"My view is whether you shake hands with a player before or after the game doesn't really matter to me. It is about playing football," he added.
"My team-mates have said nothing to me about it because we are just treating it as a normal game. It is not about me or the current situation, it is about QPR and staying in the division.
"It is not for me to talk endlessly about handshakes - what matters is what happens in the course of 90 minutes."
