Common sense within the corridors of power at the FA?? Feel free to pinch yourself but you’re not imagining it! The FA announced this morning that they’ve stripped John Terry of the England captaincy pending his court case for racist comments against Anton Ferdinand – a charge which Terry denies. Guilty or innocent, it was the only sensible option. Chelsea players and management, together with anyone associated with the Terry camp, will vehemently deride the decision but they are missing the point.
The England team is more important than the individual and the pending case would cause unnecessary distraction ahead of, and during, the upcoming Euro Championships. It is a sad reflection on Terry himself that he hasn’t grasped this fact and relinquished the captaincy on his own grounds but, let’s be honest, he hardly has a history of demonstrating a sense of responsibility and doing things for the greater good. At a time when the England rugby team are being ‘re-educated’ in the importance of playing for your country and the responsibility that carries, it is unfortunate that the football team continues to reflect an aura of selfishness and being removed from the general public. If this were to happen in any other walk of life then the parties involved would be withdrawn from positions of responsibility pending the appropriate conclusion of any investigations.
To this extent, the FA still have themselves to blame in that this case has not been resolved already. The argument that it needs to be held over until the summer due to the perceived difficulties in players being available for statements during the season is, in every way, farcical. The case should have been brought and a decision – whether that be innocent or guilty – already delivered and all parties could move on. As it is now, Terry no longer has the captaincy but will still be a valuable squad member so the distraction will still exist, albeit on a lesser scale than if he had been allowed to remain in his position. Fabio Capello also has questions to answer. Yes, a coach should stand by his players but, again, it is important to look at the bigger picture and put the team first and foremost. There can be no argument that maintaining Terry’s captaincy is in the best interests of the England team
However, this is football and by now we should be used to players, coaches and administrators believing that they operate outside of the rules that govern the rest of us. The financial discrepancies between football and ‘the real world’ continue to widen and there have been numerous instances over recent years which have supported the perception that the beautiful game really is on a different planet. I guess one should be grateful that the FA have actually made a ‘real world’ decision. Perhaps it was in error and they will reinstate Terry after seeing photos of him signing autographs at the local hospital? Hopefully not though and, instead, this is the start of a new common sense attitude which puts the interests of the entity which is the England team ahead of the individuals who consider themselves superior.
Innocent or guilty, stripping Terry of the captaincy was the sensible decision….the only decision.
