John Terry Says Goodbye: 4 Career Moments He Would Wish Never happened
Reuters / John Sibley
John Terry is an outright Chelsea and English legend, and in his prime, probably one of the best defenders in the world. The Chelsea captain has been gradually shifting towards the bench at Stamford Bridge over the past few seasons, and with Conte’s new formation, game time has been a luxury the veteran has hardly been able to afford this season.
However, Terry is a true Blue, and being the professional that he is, he has accepted that the club is heading in the right direction under the new boss, and has announced that this will be the last year he will be seen wearing the Chelsea jersey, as an official statement of him leaving in the summer has been recently released.
Signed by the club in the year 1997, and after almost two decades as a Blue, Terry has seen it all, and been a part of every bit of high and low the club has been through in that time frame. Premier League titles, European titles, ownership change, management change, and playing alongside countless teammates and legends, namely Lampard, Ballack, Drogba, etc., John Terry has had a career any footballer would be proud of.
However, life does not always provide smooth sailing, and such was the case with John Terry, who despite being the best in the business, has had a few moments he would probably not want to look back at for obvious reasons.
Here are 4 of those infamous incidents which have seen the Chelsea captain grab the headlines for the wrong reasons:
1. The Wayne Bridge Episode
It is never a good idea to get involved with a current or ex-lover of a teammate, but the rules were not clear enough to John Terry, who in the year 2010, famously got physical with his Chelsea and England teammate Wayne Bridge’s ex-wife, Vanessa Perroncel.
A lingerie model by trade, Terry not only got himself involved in an extramarital affair with her, but also managed to get her pregnant and secretly planned an abortion. The news spread like wildfire, and with the World Cup on the brink of taking place, it did not go down well with his boss, colleagues, and many football fans in general.
John was also involved in various other affairs before and during his marriage with Toni, but this was the case that shook the footballing world and was the biggest blow to his image at that given point of time. Also, it managed to give the world the most awkward sporting photo ever, with Terry and Wayne Bridge seated next to each other – a classic to say the least.
2. Racism Allegations against Anton Ferdinand
REUTERS/Eddie Keogh
In 2012, John Terry was at the centre of all things wrong yet again, as the player was slapped with a £220,000 fine and a four-match ban from the league after being accused and charged with racist comments against QPR player Anton Ferdinand.
The FA was ruthless in the hearing against the Chelsea captain, and after having admitted using the word ‘black’ and swearing, the player further went on and publicly shocked one and all by announcing immediate retirement from the England National Team, after claiming that the FA and their way of handling this scandal had made his position untenable.
3. England Captaincy
John Terry was a member of an elite England squad with the best players around, including the likes of Beckham, Lampard, Gerrard, Ferdinand, Rooney, James, and countless others.
From being a deserved starter in such a line up to eventually going on and captaining it, Terry was basically the England team symbolised by one man. He was skipper from 2006-2010, and an able one too, until the Wayne Bridge incident came along and forced manager Fabio Capello to strip him of his position, and sadly, he did so right before the world cup took place.
Terry was then made captain again in 2011, and his second stint lasted almost a year before having to give that up too, and eventually retire in 2012, bringing an abrupt end to a career he surely wished would have been better shaped if not for his own undoings being the problem.
4. That Night in Moscow
When John Terry stepped up to the final penalty on a rainy night in Moscow in the 2008 Champions League Final against Manchester United, all he had to do was put the ball in the back of the net from 12 yards out while beating Van Der Sar, and as a result, win his team the biggest club competition in the world.
However, the script did not see Terry as a hero on the night, as the captain slipped right before kicking the ball and saw his kick going wide of the post, and allowing Manchester United to be crowned champions moments later. A moment which could have been a dream for the club he loved turned into a nightmare he could never run away from.
REUTERS/Darren Staples
Chelsea did beat Bayern Munich to win the title a few years later, however, but the final did not see Terry take part because of a red card he received against Barcelona in the semi-final. Like Gerrard, Terry will always be remembered for a slip which cost his club a title to slip away from their hands.
Despite such moments to forget, Terry has countless records to his name and bleeds blue through his heart, and no matter where he goes next, he will fondly be remembered as Mr.Chelsea by one and all.
Written by Vikram Gupta 
An attacker with his words, and defends each of them with pride. A love for the game which goes hand in hand with his will to forever write. A graduate in the course of advertising and a hopeful to be author. Herrera for the win.
