Source: Daily_Mail
Matt Lawton: Terry cannot continue as England captain after Bridge betrayal
It has to end here. It has to end 132 days before England begin their campaign to win the World Cup this summer. It has to end before the England dressing room that Fabio Capello has done such a fine job rebuilding is torn apart by the divisions that John Terry appears to have now created, before it is too late and England blow their best chance of winning the World Cup since 1990. Sorry mess: John Terry was asked to be a leader of men. not take a baseball bat to team morale Terry cannot continue as England captain. Not when he has shown such a flagrant disregard for the honour that the Italian bestowed upon him. Capello asked him to be a leader of men, on and off the pitch. Not someone who takes a baseball bat to team morale by hopping into bed with a team-mate's recently estranged girlfriend and the mother of his son. Not when he has then asked his hapless representatives to buy off Wayne Bridge's ex, as became apparent in the High Court yesterday, and make such a bungled attempt to cover up the whole sorry mess. What he said'It is the ultimate honour to be the captain of your country and I am very proud to be given this great opportunity. It is an incredible challenge and one I am looking forward to.'Terry replaces David Beckham, Aug 2006.'It means the world to me, to retain the armband. To get it back is a huge achievement. To get it above Rio and the others is a great honour.'Terry is confirmed as Fabio Capello's captain after his rotation policy, Aug 2008.England's players have never dared present themselves as a virtuous bunch but many are appalled by the way Terry has behaved. They no longer consider him the right man to lead the team ukin South Africa, no longer see him as someone they can unite behind. As one observer who is close to the squad remarked last night: 'John has crossed the line.' Capello wants to wait before he makes any kind of decision, and to many that might sound like the most prudent approach. Wait and see how the players interact when they gather for the friendly against Egypt in March. Wait and see if the squad dynamic has been affected. Will the players show their usual warmth to Terry during that first team meal at the Grove Hotel? Will the usual camaraderie be there in training? It is hard to imagine how that first training session will go. Will Capello order his coaches to give Terry and Bridge the same colour bibs and then see if they pass to each other? Or put them on opposite sides and time how long it takes before Bridge sends his former friend and Chelsea team-mate flying? Assuming, that is, that Bridge even shows up. Imagine the captain's press conference that normally takes place on the eve of every international. 'So John, how do you think you'll fare against Egypt?' It might be the kind of question the Football Association would like to hear, but the game will be the last thing on the agenda. It's actually why Capello should consider acting sooner rather than later. Decide that enough is enough, get the dirty job done and start afresh with a new skipper in time for the match at Wembley on March 3. Terry might still dominate the questions but it would take a bit of the sting out of the situation. Perhaps avoid it becoming a total circus. Capello does take a pretty dim view of what has happened and he has not been too impressed, we understand, by other headlines that have been generated by Terry's behaviour. There is the deal with a tabloid newspaper he does not consider appropriate for the England captain, and the revelations that were made in the News of the World shortly before Christmas. Capello's feelings on the two issues have been communicated to Terry. Who should Fabio Capello turn to instead?If Fabio Capello chooses to change his captain so close to a World Cup he has options in his squad, players who have captained their club teams, as well as the national team. Here we take a look at the contenders.Wayne Rooney Glenn Hoddle once said: 'I've always thought the best player should lead the team out; he should be the first player the opposition sees when you come out of the dressing room and the first player out of the tunnel and on to the pitch. France did it with Platini. Argentina did it with Maradona.' If so, will the current England coach do the same with Rooney? He's the best player, he's done it before against Brazil recently but does he have the temperament to take on the jobfull-time?Steven Gerrard The skipper of Liverpool and England's vice captain. He has won the European Cup and the FA Cup as a captain and so has the football pedigree. He's well liked in the dressing room, too.Rio Ferdinand Vice captain of Manchester United, but his form has been patchy and he is currently serving a four-game ban for violent conduct.But Terry has ignored the warnings and the advice and, while some of it smacks of a lack of intelligence, it also points to the kind of arrogance that cannot be tolerated any longer. As Sportsmail revealed in November, Terry was presented by his business partners as someone actively seeking to cash in on his status as England captain ahead of the World Cup. There was an email, circulated around the sporting world by Riviera Entertainment Limited, that declared that 'John Terry is available to create effective brand awareness and endorse products and services globally'. It then went on to boast that 'John Terry is: British sporting hero; England's football captain; World Cup 2018 ambassador; Football icon; Dad of the year 2008; Voted as one of the World's most influencial people.' Senior figures at the FA and Stamford Bridge were horrified. Terry attempted to distance himself from the email but he was kidding no one, and the revelations that then followed in the News of the World - the suggestion that he was offering tours of Chelsea's training ground in exchange for hard cash - raised further concerns in football's corridors of power. Why, senior officials were asking, does someone who is so handsomely paid by Chelsea need to hawk himself around for money in such an unsavoury fashion? Clearly, Terry has become the worst example of the modern millionaire sportsman. Someone who has fooled himself into thinking he is untouchable, able to behave in whichever way he chooses. 'Do you know what the problem is with John?' asked someone who knows him well yesterday. 'Nobody has said "No" to him in his life.' Yesterday, however, someone did say no, and that someone was a High Court judge who decided Terry could not hide behind a super injunction in an effort to protect his already battered reputation. And why? Well, partly because it is a matter of public interest. Because the actions of the England captain could derail England's World Cup campaign. The FA have changed since the last major sex scandal. They went into meltdown in 2004 when it turned out that the chief executive and the England manager were seeing the same Soho Square secretary, Faria Alam. S ven Goran Eriksson somehow got away with it, but Mark Palios lost his job and so did his director of communications. But the organisation have learned from Fariagate and they have evolved and matured. This situation is, of course, different. For a start, Terry and Bridge are not FA employees. But they are England players and it remains the responsibility of the FA and their employees to run the national team as professionally as they possibly can. And that means looking at Terry's recent conduct, and the lack of respect he has shown the England captain's armband, and respond accordingly. It is up to Capello to make the change, but he should begin today by considering the qualities of the potential replacements. Rio Ferdinand, Steven Gerrard, Wayne Rooney, Frank Lampard. Right now, just about anyone would be better than Terry. John Terry named as star in affair with Wayne Bridge's ex-girlfriend Vanessa PerroncelEngland to face Mexico at Wembley before heading to World Cup finalsInjured Spurs winger Aaron Lennon a doubt for World CupWayne Rooney could play for Real Madrid - Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger salutes in-form Manchester United striker