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So Fabio Capello has chosen John Terry as his full-time England Captain. Well, the referee will always be on the other side then...

John Terry Wrong Choice As England Captain—I Back Steven Gerrard

by Andrew McNair [HUMOR]

34

596 reads

Humor

August 19, 2008


So Fabio Capello has chosen John Terry as his full-time England Captain.

Well, the referee will always be on the other side then. After all, England now have their own!

It was always going to be a tough choice for Capello with Terry's track record (great as a player but poor in respect) or Rio Ferdinand, who once was banned for eight months due to a missed drug test.

Two fantastic role models.

When things get tough all those two can do is moan and put a tackle in.

Steven Gerrard, on the other hand, will single-handedly save the day.

Just ask Liverpool!

Anyone remember the 2005 UEFA Champions League Final or the 2006 FA Cup Final? An inspirational Gerrard was in evidence there.

Both times Liverpool fought back from behind and both times thanks to goals from Stevie G.

John Terry's European Cup Final experience was to take the deciding penalty kick because, well, he is John Terry and he's the only guy for the job.

Oops, was that another wrong decision John? Maybe you should tell the ref!

I hope John Terry can behave this season and maybe avoid grabbing officials as England do their best to reach South Africa 2010.

I doubt it though!

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34 comments Last one added 10 months ago — Leave a Comment

  1. Brandon Brown 10 months ago

    Can't say I disagree with you. Something about Terry rubs me the wrong way, and I am rarely wrong about my gut feelings. He just seems too flashy for a defender and talks too much nonsense.

    But to each his own. If England don't qualify for the World Cup, then the FA would do well to ban all those players from international for a year, and fire Capello. England would not be happy with missing out on two major tournaments in a row.

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  2. Hamza Khan 10 months ago

    The thing is while gerrard is irreplacable for liverpool his place in england's starting team isn't quite certain. Its not that he won;t be chosen, of course he will but the thing is that nobody knows where he'd play best in the team. ie as a midfielder or as a winger etc. Whereas terry's position is much more certain. Besides that gerrard seems to play better with liverpool then with england...Anyway all three would've been good choices..

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    • Andrew McNair 10 months ago

      Thanks for the thoughts Hamza. Steve is too nice and a model pro...he'll play anywhere and that is an admirable qulity on its own.

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    • Jon Marum 10 months ago

      I don't think terry's place would have been certain if he wasn't captain to be honest... if it was given to rio then terry's place may have been under threat if king/woodgate were ever fit!

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  3. Salomon Gonzales 10 months ago

    I think everybody are being a little too harsh on Terry. Thats all im going to say...

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  4. Ismail Ayub 10 months ago

    I agree, I wudda much preferred Barry or Stevie G captaining England... Terry isn't respectful enough towards officials. I remember him shouting at the referee who gave Ashley cole a yellow card for that tackle on alan hutton in the 4-4 tottenham game. Terry should have been controlling Cole, as Cole was in the wrong and was lucky to get away with just a yellow, BUT terry just shouted at the referee. It was disgraceful behaivour from a Club Captain. AND... everyone says Gerrard doesn't carry his club form 2 England... well, he still plays good for England, much better then Lampard does. At least Gerrard carries forward some good form from Club Level...

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    • Andrew McNair 10 months ago

      Thanks Ismail. It was an ugly situation and sadly one of many.

      I think Gerrard just doesn't feel as needed or special at International level and it shows in his perfromances.

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  5. Barney 10 months ago

    I reckon it shouldve been either gerrard or ferdinand, but if terry guides us to the world cup and, as you say, behaves better in the Premier League, then it could be a good choice. After all, it's a safe bet that Capello knows more than us.

    Oh and you forgot that Olympiakos game where Gerrard saved the day again. "OH YOU BEAUTY!! WHAT A HIT SON!"

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    • Andrew McNair 10 months ago

      Haha I wish I'm a Liverpool fan when Steve does that!

      Yip you're right the big man may well lead England to South Africa. We'll have to wait and see.

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  6. Matt S 10 months ago

    But Gerrard didn’t single handedly save the day when he was captain in the end of campaign qualifiers against Russia and Croatia did he? We lost both of these games with him leading the team and he was guilty of a big miss in Russia that would have put England 2-0 up.

    Personally I think Gerrard is more certain of a place in the team than Terry, but the fact that he isn’t guaranteed a specific position in the midfield makes it hard to make him captain as it would appear as if Capello is always fitting him in around other players.

    Terry makes a bit more sense in so much as he is Chelsea captain whereas Ferdinand is not at United – but Rio is just a victim of circumstances really, if Terry had 2 players at Chelsea that had been in the team since the early 90s then he wouldn’t be captain either.

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    • Andrew McNair 10 months ago

      Would Rio or Terry have made a difference as captain? They would have helped at the back that's sure.

      Thanks for the comments mate.

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  7. Jeff Dunlop-Jones 10 months ago

    I've been pondering this for a while now. I have to throw in my Liverpool bias and say I would have preferred Gerrard, but at the same time there is no doubting the three candidates are natural and inspirational leaders. Ferdinand has impressed me with the way he has matured, and Terry cannot be questioned regarding his commitment, not to mention his ability to defend and rock up at the other end and score goals! And Gerrard... is just brilliant.

    The unfortunate thing, though, is that Gerrard's brilliance has stifled his role in the England squad. When partnered by Lampard in the middle, SG has been forced to play as a holding centre, and not allowed the freedom he uses so well at club level. His commitment to the team and coaches is such that he accepts this role, and knows that abandoning it would potentially leave a hole between the defensive and midfield lines. The fact that he has no set place in the midfield is not a reflection of his form or ability, but rather that he is more versatile than many. SG is (at least) as good as Lampard at going forward, but Lampard cannot defend like Gerrard. I believe that Gerrard should be allowed to fulfill the same role he does at Liverpool, alongside Hargreves. (sorry for the sidetrack... got lost in my thoughts).

    With that said, I hope Terry performs well as captain. If he can guide England to the world cup in SA, and help them achieve their potential, then the choice will have been a good one.

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  8. Yoosof Farah 10 months ago

    I can see where your coming from about Steven Gerrard being England captain. He would've indeed been a good captain for England. But for me, I think Ferdinand should've got it. I'm a believer in the "centre-back captain" thing, that centre-back should be the place for the captain. Also, Ferdinand is a better role model than both Gerrard and Terry, and does way more for charity than those two do put together. He is a more mature player than those two and would probably therefore be a better captain, he can handle the pressures more than those two.

    To see where I'm coming from, check out my article on the captaincy debate: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/49151-why-rio-ferdinand-wouldve-been-a-better-choice-as-england-captain

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    • Andrew McNair 10 months ago

      Thanks for the comments buddy. We all have our opinions and I understand the defender thing. That centre mid role is also great for a captain.

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    • Brad Simkulet 10 months ago

      I agree with Yoosof that Ferdinand has the makings of a Captain, but to say he's a better role model than Stevie G...maybe I am missing something, but didn't Rio serve a one year ban for failing to take a drug test? Surely that could be a reason for him not being as good a role model as Stevie, although it is past and he has been pretty awesome ever since his return, so maybe you're right and it doesn't matter anymore. Regardless of player personalities, I think you've got a good argument Yoosof.

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  9. Yoosof Farah 10 months ago

    Going back to my previous comment, sorry I don't mean to be rude or anything putting the link for my article in the comment, as if I'm advertising my article or anything. Sorry if it offends you Andrew, you don't have to read it!

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  10. Brad Simkulet 10 months ago

    I am not really sure who it should be, but you make a damn good case for Stevie G, Andrew. And you are absolutely right that it should not be JT.

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  11. Jon Marum 10 months ago

    Terry had his chance as far as I am concerned, going back to him makes amockery of the captaincy esp seeing as capello tried out others beforehand. It was a strange thing to do if he was just going to go back to terry.

    Rio/Gerrard would have been netter choices as they are less tarnished by steve mcclarens brush of failure! I would have given it to gerrard, but if g neville could be relied upon for his fitness then i think he's the perfect captain!

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  12. Chris Kirk 10 months ago

    I just dont get what the big deal with the captaincy thing.
    Going back to when football was a sport, the captain was a spokesman for the players when it came to contract renewals and tactical issues and fitness matters.
    Now players have personal fitness coaches and Agents, Managers have tactical coaches, fitness coaches Assistant Managers, Advisors etc.
    I feel the modern game has evolved and captains are merely media scapegoats now. If your good enough to gain an international call up, surely you dont need some other player to motivate you and keep your positional game in check.
    Good read Andrew by the way.

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  13. Khalid Shakran 10 months ago

    I don't really care who is the captain of the team. I think captain's are just labels to either fool the team, the fans, or the media. Most likely, it's the fans.

    It's not the end of the world if Terry is the captain, nor is it if Gerrard is. Players are true captains with their performance on the field and their football conduct.

    But thanks for the article though Andrew.

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    • Andrew McNair 10 months ago

      It's the top honour in football as far as I'm concerned. To Captain ones country. I just feel Terry doesn't deserve it...I know he can play the game as good as anyone.

      Thanks for the comments.

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    • Khalid Shakran 10 months ago

      Yeah, but I didn't talk about the "honor" part you mentioned. Captains, like I said are labels. No matter how good the captain is, certain players will still stand out despite the captancy situation.

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    • Andrew McNair 10 months ago

      Yeah and we can agree to disagree...I never said you said that.

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    • Khalid Shakran 10 months ago

      Yeah, we can, but I never said we couldn't.

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  14. Ismail Ayub 10 months ago

    Good point, Gerrard has failed in an England shirt too, but he hasn't been nowhere near as woeful as Lamps... He's still our best CM and he's deployed on the left... WHY???

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  15. Thomas 10 months ago

    I get a weird feeling when I see Terry. Gerrard is much better than him. he behaves better than Terry does too.

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