This post is pretty much inevitable. This past week has been filled with reports of the transgressions (Tiger's choice of words) that Terry has made with respect to Wayne Bridge's ex-girlfriend. Then early Friday we had reports that John Terry was stripped of the England captaincy. Personally I don't see the point in taking the arm band away if he is still going to be playing, but I am not Capello. Now reports are saying that Rio Ferdinand will be stepping in to fill the captain's role. Some will agree and others will disagree about that choice. We will discuss that later. Let's take a look at what Terry brings to the England team, how this could potentially effect England at this summer's World Cup, and finally who should be taking over as captain.
John Terry. Where to begin really when it comes to talking about England captain. I remember when he was first called on to be captain and a lot of people speculated it was up between him, Lampard, and Rio Ferdinand. Honestly I thought that Lampard would take it. They were both playing so well and I admit that I am partial to a midfield captain ala Keane or Vieira. It didn't take long to warm up to John Terry as England captain. He is an all business defender that has very few shortcomings and more than makes up for them with his grit and tenacity. Strong tackler. He might be the strongest tackler I have seen and is only challenged by Jaime Carragher who I also consider a strong tackler. Although he doesn't score as much as he did four or five years ago he is still a dominant player in the air. His heading ability is unrivaled in the England squad and I would venture to say that only Vidic of Manchester United is on the same level in the English Premier League. Terry, up until now, didn't have all of the off field issues that plagued players like Rio Ferdinand or Ashley Cole. He is the model of consistency and has proven that making him captain was a good move. Another aspect that is not in his control but is an important part of being a captain is that he is rarely injured. He plays game in and game out for Chelsea and he does the same for England. It won't be easy to replace that type of player.
This was a huge decision for Capello to make. On top of that, this decision was made roughly five months ahead of the World Cup. So will this have an adverse effect on the England team? Recently there has been talk of a similar thing happening with Eric Wynalda and the '98 USA World Cup team. They exited that tournament in embarrassing fashion. Can this team perform well with all of the turmoil off of the pitch? Of course. England has some of the best players playing for them. Wayne Rooney, Lampard, and Ashley Cole are some the best players in the world at their respective positions. John Terry is the player you can look over at and get inspiration from knowing that he going to give everything he has got until the final whistle. That is invaluable to a team in the 85th minute with a 1-0 lead. The other issue is that John Terry has not been dropped from the England camp. I don't see the need to strip him of the captaincy if he is still starting game in and game out. It is not known at this time whether Terry will be dropped from the team, but I doubt it. Especially with Rio Ferdinand not playing many matches this season so far. Terry seems to be the only English defender to remain healthy. Will anything change if he is starting right alongside Ferdinand on the opening day of the World Cup against the USA? I imagine the team will go on as usual, but who knows what Terry will be thinking since it will be business as usual except he won't have the arm band. If there are any 'Team Bridge' shirts in the locker room expect bad things for England this summer.
This was a huge decision for Capello to make. On top of that, this decision was made roughly five months ahead of the World Cup. So will this have an adverse effect on the England team? Recently there has been talk of a similar thing happening with Eric Wynalda and the '98 USA World Cup team. They exited that tournament in embarrassing fashion. Can this team perform well with all of the turmoil off of the pitch? Of course. England has some of the best players playing for them. Wayne Rooney, Lampard, and Ashley Cole are some the best players in the world at their respective positions. John Terry is the player you can look over at and get inspiration from knowing that he going to give everything he has got until the final whistle. That is invaluable to a team in the 85th minute with a 1-0 lead. The other issue is that John Terry has not been dropped from the England camp. I don't see the need to strip him of the captaincy if he is still starting game in and game out. It is not known at this time whether Terry will be dropped from the team, but I doubt it. Especially with Rio Ferdinand not playing many matches this season so far. Terry seems to be the only English defender to remain healthy. Will anything change if he is starting right alongside Ferdinand on the opening day of the World Cup against the USA? I imagine the team will go on as usual, but who knows what Terry will be thinking since it will be business as usual except he won't have the arm band. If there are any 'Team Bridge' shirts in the locker room expect bad things for England this summer.
We now know that Rio Ferdinand will be stepping in to take over the England captaincy. There is a lot of uneasiness about that around the web. Some people are for Rio while others are against him. There have been a few other names thrown in the hat as the people who should be considered for the role. I have even heard Beckham should be back as captain. Now that is a laugh! We will go with Wayne Rooney first. He is in the form of his life. As of this article he has scored an incredible 20 goals in the league alone this season. That is pretty impressive when comparing it to the 24 games he has played and considering the next closest player has 15 goals. Rooney would definitely match Terry in the effort department, but a forward as captain is not the norm in soccer. Not saying that makes it right but even Sir Alex has stated that he prefers his captains to be in midfield or defense. Next up we Steven Gerrard. He hasn't been playing as well as he can this season for Liverpool. There also seem to be some question marks over his integrity when it comes to diving. One thing can't be denied and that is Steven Gerrard is a great captain for Liverpool. He has turned many games upside down. A Champions League and FA Cup final come to mind. I would put him behind Rooney in the pecking order because to me Rooney gives it 100% for 90 minutes. Gerrard generally pops up in the 90th minute for the winner. That is great for club, but isn't inspiring to the rest of the team when you have to dig in against some of the top teams in the world. Finally there is the new captain himself Rio Ferdinand. Personally I think he is next best in line after Terry. When fit he is the best defender England has and is in the top 3 in the world. He had some off field issues and is no stranger to the spotlight but when it comes to football you will be hard pressed to find better and that includes Terry. He is one of the pillars on which United have been able to claim three successive Premier League titles. He has put his issues of losing focus aside and has been playing great football for the last 4 years. He gets my vote for being the next captain and Rooney would be right behind him.
There you have it. Tell us what you think. Vote in the poll on the main page and let us know who you think should have been the next England captain. I am sure this is not the last we have heard of this scandal.
There you have it. Tell us what you think. Vote in the poll on the main page and let us know who you think should have been the next England captain. I am sure this is not the last we have heard of this scandal.
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