Feb 10
25
Wayne Bridge: a rarity in football, a real gentleman
So, Wayne Bridge has decided that he cannot play alongside a man who stole his girlfriend away from him, forced him out of the club he was happy at, and still managed to maintain his relationship with his wife, and his place in the national team.
Wayne Bridge: a rarity in football, a real gentleman
So, Wayne Bridge has decided that he cannot play alongside a man who stole his girlfriend away from him, forced him out of the club he was happy at, and still managed to maintain his relationship with his wife, and his place in the national team.
Despite Fabio Capello insisting otherwise, it is not a surprise to me.
Throughout this whole, tawdry, and, for overpaid superstar Premier League players these days, entirely predictable, Bridge has been an absolute gentleman: maintaining his silence when the affair broke in the newspapers, ignoring his ex-girlfriend’s flagrant misuse of the situation for free publicity and then, thankfully, refusing her advances for a reconciliation when she asked for one through the papers (whether they were true or not, depends on your level of cynicism when it comes to the red tops).
This whole shameful episode has been bookmarked by two statements that show how much of a mature adult Bridge is. First, a short, succinct missive proclaiming that he has no comment to make and that he wishes his privacy to be respected – which he kept to and was subsequently honoured (in general) by the papers. Meanwhile, Terry continued to brief the press in a, thankfully, futile bid to keep the England captaincy.
It was a cynical attempt to manipulate our view of him. But when he was pictured by ‘paparazzi’ reconciling with his wife and family, those who know the privacy laws knew that he was behind the pictures. This is a man, after all, who went to court to stop this whole sorry affair from getting out in the first place. When the ‘clandestine’ snaps of him with his children in Dubai – their smiling faces in full view of the cameras – were published without fear nor favour (an absolutely no-no these days), it was clear that Terry had waived their anonymity for his own personal gain.
And now, England are faced with Terry in an England side that he had contributed to depleting.
But after such a considered and thoughtful retirement release from Bridge, is it really inconceivable to imagine that it will be Terry not Bridge who will be left at home this summer.
On football alone there is a case for Fabio Capello telling Terry to adios. With Ashley Cole out for three months and a definite doubt for South Africa, England need a left-back and Bridge is the best behind Cole there is.
Terry, without the captaincy, is not everyone’s first choice in the centre. He has looked stodgy since losing the captaincy and had an absolute shocker against Inter Milan in the Champions League, being solely to blame for their opener. In fact, he is not even many people’s second choice for centre back.
A fit Ledley King is by far the best centre back in England and, with Spurs nursing him through the season, it is not beyond the realms to use him heavily in the tournament proper. Second to him is Rio Ferdinand, the new captain, who is injury prone, but only niggles that should be fine by the end of a world cup season. Joleon Lescott is an ample replacement, and then there is one place left – Matthew Upson or Phil Jagielka could take it and do just as good a job as Terry judging on their performances for West Ham and Everton respectively this season.
But the biggest reason to leave Terry at home has to be his divisiveness. The man has slept and then stolen a team-mate’s girlfriend from under his nose – what self-respecting footballer is going to trust him again, let alone a team-mate?
Throw in the inevitable whispering campaign among the ever-influential WAGs and it all adds up tp a difficult bonding experience.
The third factor is that it is not beyond the realms of possibility that Terry will screw up again. He has done so, after all, time and time and time again. So, drop him now Capello or, and it has to be said, I don’t think England have a cat in Hell’s chance of winning the World Cup.
You only have to look at the Dutch to see what a disunited squad can achieve.
Absolutely nothing.
