Chelsea’s captain is starting to feel the pressure and his form is beginning to dip
As the nation’s pubs and parlours continue to agonise over the John Terry affair England’s most talked-about footballer had a rather patchy second public examination of his on-field abilities.
Terry had passed the first test calmly enough, when scoring the winning goal at Burnley on Saturday. However, Terry’s footballing cojones have never been in doubt and his late header at Turf Moor prepared us for another evening where the expectation was he would breeze through.
But he stepped out against Hull knowing he was only a potential two days away from the showdown with the England manager, Fabio Capello, which will decide if the captain’s armband continues to be worn by the boy from Barking. His potential demotion from that position, and the gaping hole it will punch in his pride, might just be starting to get through to him as the Chelsea captain had an evening he would rather forget.
The defence, which it is his primary job to shepherd, was shaky, while his own contribution, one that included a yellow card early in the second half for a clumsy challenge on Jozy Altidore, was hardly rock solid.
Capello has yet to air his views on the effect of Terry’s alleged affair with Vanessa Perroncel, the former girlfriend of England’s reserve left-back Wayne Bridge. But it is understood that the manager is still undecided and wishes to speak first with Terry so that he can gauge his captain’s state of mind.
The Italian will also wish to establish if the very worst of this, or any future Terry scandal, is now out, following the cumulative effect of other notorious episodes, the latest of which featured Terry taking £10,000 for a tour of the Chelsea training ground – he claims the cash was given to charity.
If further revelations are to be revealed in the near future then Capello will wish to be told in advance, so he can make a fully informed judgment.
Terry, too, is thought to be undecided over his next move and is keen to know what Capello is thinking before he makes any decision. Credulity is stretched, though, when trying to imagine a man who loves leading deciding he is happy to fall on his sword.
The night in Hull began with Terry receiving the first of many regulation boos he would surely have expected as he led his team out for the warm-up. These were followed by an opening verse of Same Old Terry, Always Cheating, which was repeated throughout. Then Chelsea conceded an early corner and the defender also had to listen to Terry, Terry Where’s Your Wife?
The answer to that poser is that Toni Terry is in Dubai to escape the furore and, reportedly, considering the future of her marriage.
Apparently Terry wants to follow her to the Gulf state for crisis talks. This, though, depends on his being given permission by Chelsea, although the club are currently keeping their own counsel.
Of more concern to Mr Chelsea as he left the field would have been the flat performance of his team – who would have gone four points clear with a win last night – just as Manchester United are beginning their familiar new year challenge for the title. And Arsenal are next up at Stamford Bridge, on Sunday.
This was not a bad performance from Terry but a wobbly one, and you could sense how he needs to have his England future sorted out sooner rather than later.
Terry had been in the frame for the sloppy goal they conceded after 30 minutes. His man at corners was Anthony Gardner, and though Terry again shadowed him, when Stephen Hunt’s delivery landed between him and Michael Ballack, Steven Mouyokolo moved in to head beyond Petr Cech.
At least the first half ended with Terry, having again been asked the location of his spouse, seeing Didier Drogba equalise. That caused him to salute the travelling Chelsea support before he appeared to offer a stare and a shush at the singing Hull fans on his way back for the restart.
After Burnley on Saturday Carlo Ancelotti had dismissed questions of Terry’s leadership. “There is no discussion about this. I don’t know why you ask me this. I do not want to talk about his personal life.”
A hunch says that Capello may broadly share the same views as Ancelotti having been reared in the same country, one whose privacy laws can be described as draconian when compared to Britain’s.
On Friday we will discover how far away Capello feels he is from his Italian homeland.
John TerryChelseaHull CityPremier LeagueJamie Jacksonguardian.co.uk
