John Terry Captaincy Drama Is Meaningless to England's World Cup Bid

The furore over the John Terry affair, and whether he should remain as England captain, has been blown completely out of proportion.

In football, the top teams don't need a captain to lead and inspire, because every player in the dressing room is equally capable of doing the same. It is hard to imagine that Steven Gerrard, Rio Ferdinand, and Wayne Rooney rely on John Terry to get them up for a big game.

Indeed, a number of top players have, over the years, indicated that it barely matters who wears the armband, as the players all know each others personalities and games to such an extent that there is nothing a captain can add.

Andy Cole has pointed out that, whilst in sports such as Cricket, the captain is of great importance in strategic decision making and team selection, "football captains are rarely anywhere near so important...I hate to disappoint those who buy into the notion that every captain gives a Braveheart speech before a game, calling for his troops to die for him and the cause, but it’s a myth.”

In his interview, Cole also asserts that the identity of a teams captain will never win a match. So, if the captaincy bears little practical value on the pitch, where is it's true value?

Captaincy in football, especially a big job such as the England captaincy, is a symbolic role far more than it is a sporting one. The captain is expected to lead the team with dignity, loyalty and pride, and to be a focal point, taking pressure off the other players. They are also usually the main commercial focus of the team, who's image sponsors will seek to buy into. David Beckham was excellent on both counts, but John Terry has blotted his copybook again.

How can Terry be the symbolic leader of an England team if he has so betrayed one of his team-mates? He can't.

But the key question is whether taking the captaincy from Terry affect England's performances on the pitch? As Cole suggests, almost certainly not. But will keeping him as captain damage the image of the squad going into a World Cup year? Most certainly, but what does that have to do with the aforementioned performances on the pitch?

The wisest move on Capello's part would be to strip Terry of the captaincy but keep him in the squad. Terry is a man who finds himself fuelled by the injustice, as we saw with his goal against Burnley. What better motivation for him to lead England to the World Cup than the need to redeem himself in the eyes of the public?

After all, if England win the World Cup in the summer, by September we'll all have forgotten who Vanessa Perroncel is.