Sorry Woodgate set to plug the gap

Jonathan Woodgate is poised to put two traumatic years behind him and step into the defensive breach left by Rio Ferdinand's likely defection from Leeds to Old Trafford.

The player, shamed and almost broken by the twice-held assault trial that rocked the club, will now have the opportunity at 22 of a fresh start after avoiding a jail sentence last winter.

It would be a daunting prospect for most centre halves to contemplate, following in the stylish footsteps of a player who is considered to be the finest young English defender of his generation.

Yet, while Terry Venables will inevitably seek a replacement, he will have no qualms about Woodgate's ability to partner Dominic Matteo at the heart of Leeds' back four in this coming Premiership season.

Venables said: 'I've had a good chat with Jon. He's convinced me he's in the right frame of mind to pick up the threads of his career.

'He's had a tough time but he wants to put what has happened behind him. He's fine and he'll be with us a long time. I mean to help him as much as possible.'

Woodgate's pedigree as a centre half has never been in doubt. Indeed, former manager David O'Leary believed Woodgate and Ferdinand were the future hub of England's defence as well as Leeds', and that partnership could yet bloom under Sven Goran Eriksson.

The reason why Woodgate has not yet added to his solitary cap against Bulgaria in 1999 - and why he watched the World Cup on television - is also the reason why he will be under such scrutiny as he steps back into the limelight.

He was found guilty of affray in the infamous retrial involving himself and Lee Bowyer before suffering a broken jaw in a drunken incident in Middlesbrough. More maturity off the pitch now, as well as on it, will earn remorseful Woodgate a major role in Leeds' transition under Venables and the England place that a patient Eriksson has kept warm through an FA ban.