All indications are that England boss Fabio Capello is about to name John Terry as England’s ‘permanent’ captain.
Capello is quoted in this morning’s newspapers as saying
“I think after one year of punishment that is enough for a mistake,” he said. “‘For this reason, I need to make a decision about this problem. It does not need to be captain for one game, it needs to be permanent. Before I announce a decision I want to speak with Terry, with the players, but in the end it will be my decision. Rio was captain, but my first captain was John Terry. Rio was a good captain, so was Steven Gerrard, but I selected Terry first until his mistake.”
First mistake? Is Capello alluding to Terry’s affair with his best friends partner or the fact that he was caught accepting cash to give guided tours of the Chelsea facilities?
It will be interesting to see how England’s current captain Rio Ferdinand reacts to losing the England captaincy through injury. Getting injured right before the World Cup meant that Rio has played for England just four times in 11 games since getting the job. He will know that if Terry gets the armband against Wales and Ghana, that the odds on him ever getting it back will be slim.
In my humble opinion, this is a bad move by Capello. Terry actions with Wayne Bridge’s partner was the last in a serious of tawdry stories that graced the front page of the newspapers a year ago. There was also the fact that Terry had enlisted the services of a marketing agency in trying to cash in on his status in World Cup year. Plus, as the Daily Mail revealed, that the private Wembley box Terry was allowed to rent at a discounted price was being offered on the black market.
The England captain is a player that players, and fans, look up to. Other than Chelsea fans, no England fans look up to John Terry as the boos around the grounds every week show.
For all Terry’s so-called leadership skills, I found it very telling that when it came to penalties against Everton in the FA Cup that Terry was nowhere to be see. Maybe he was having flashbacks to this penalty?
