In a year when England’s build-up to a tournament is proving to be typically turbulent, the John Terry racism saga took another step up with the news that his trial, following an incident with QPR defender Anton Ferdinand during a Premier League match in October, will take place on July 9. As this falls after the Euro 2012 final, there is no way the captain can clear his name before England play which opens up another world of problems for their beleaguered manager.
Fabio Capello must be thinking how a seemingly successful reign as England manager was so spectacularly turned on its head two years ago, when a heady optimism surrounding the team was brutally stripped away in the midst of scandal and injury. Terry was a big cause of the disturbance then as well, his affair with the ex-wife of compatriot and former Chelsea team-mate Wayne Bridge leading to Capello’s first taste of the uniqueness of managing England.
No other country’s football team seems to be so embroiled in hysteria and controversy as England, with the infamous media machine playing no small part in this. It can be said that many potentially world class sides have been scuppered by off-field issues and a self-defeating mentality, which put paid to the recent ‘golden generation’. The emergence of young talent such as Phil Jones and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain have given hope to a new start, but the weight of media scrutiny won’t go away while players like Terry are part of the set-up.
Even if Terry is found innocent in July he will remain a focus of speculation right through his playing days. Nothing like the media darling his predecessor David Beckham was, Terry has had to deal with a string of controversies throughout his career. None of these have involved racism, but they have seen a deterioration in the player’s credibility, making it increasingly hard for Capello to support him. Jason Roberts, a Reading forward and campaigner for Kick It Out, commented that the England dressing room would be “toxic” if Terry is taken to Poland. These fears would be heightened if Rio Ferdinand, Anton’s brother, is included in the squad.
Phil Jones and Chris Smalling will be watching events very closely, having been touted as a future defensive partnership for England, to see if Capello and the FA decide their captain’s selection would be too great a risk. The player will not step down voluntarily, having released a statement saying he is “sure” of his innocence, but regardless of the true nature of the events he will be under enormous pressure to bequeath his leadership. If he is sure of his own innocence, Terry would have wanted to get the trial over with well before preparations for the summer. Instead he will have to play the PR offensive of his life in order to lead England out for perhaps his last tournament.
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