John Terry - Captain, Leader, Legend for a reason

Players grace the beautiful game everyday, but only some leave an ever-lasting mark for both the bad and good reasons. Forget whatever happened beyond the field, some of the players have made sure that it has never hindered the way they played when it mattered the most. Ryan Giggs and John Terry would be a perfect example for that.

Every youth player out there dreams to have a captain that not only cares about him but also helps him grow as a player during his time at the club. Various former and present Chelsea Youth Academy players have told that there is a reason why John Terry is respected by all the players at the club and holds a cult status among the fans. At a time when money is everything and club does not hold any meaning, finding someone who has stayed with a club for 17 odd years, right from when he was a youth player, is a very rare sight and only few players can boast about it.

Voted as Chelsea’s best player of the season two years after his debut, the man has become an iconic captain and the most successful in the club’s history. He took over the captaincy after learning the trade from former captain Marcel Desailly and won the Premier League in his first ever season with the arm-band under manager, Jose Mourinho. His world class displays made him one of the only four captains to lead Chelsea to major honours, which included the Carling Cup.

The only Chelsea player to win the PFA Player of the Year, he lifted the trophy for the second time in 2005. The 2006/2007 season was tough on him as injuries regularly plagued him and a back surgery limited his appearances on the field. The 2008 season was perhaps his worst season, even though he was very consistent in his performances, his missed penalty kick in Moscow against Manchester United still haunts him. But his outstanding performances were back under Guus Hiddink and Luiz Fellipe Scolari, as he won the FA Cup for the second time. The year 2009 was heart-breaking from him just as it was for other Chelsea fans after crashing out against Barcelona in a fashion which you can only call disgraceful. 2010 was quite a torrid one as Chelsea failed to secure trophies but John claimed a personal achievement of 500 appearances, an landmark which he is proud off even today. The 2011/2012 season, as we know, has been by far the most memorable season for the Blues as they clinched their first ever European title, and even though John could not feature in it, he was proud of the players and was definitely one of the main reasons that made Chelsea reach the semifinals.

Criticism is normal even though scandals are not. But if you have to decide who’s better than knowing that one of the players has gone through a lot but still persevered to achieve something great will definitely be a deciding factor. Scandals and personal issues is normal for John Terry. Each and every top-flight player has had his issues. Media does not care about them and that’s why they are lucky. John Terry is the perfect headline for any tabloid; people want to hear bad things about him and such things increase viewership and the money they earn. As he said in his trial, he has become immune to what the fans say to him, the levels of abuse he gets day in and day out and has understood that the best way to deal with it is just laugh it off. You wont find many who would actually do something like this. People actually told him to quit the game and hang-up his boots after the Wayne Bridge saga. He went on to lose his England captaincy and the media pressed him more and more. But his team-mates at Chelsea trusted him, understood how he felt like and played for him. He got the captaincy back and kept on guiding England until recently.

Looking back, the one aspect he would like to change from his life would be the racism saga. Allegedly calling someone an abuse which is derogatory towards his race and color is seen as the filthiest act anyone can commit. Suarez was charged but John Terry, until now, hasn’t been charged. So why all the hate? He was removed as the England captain once again, but he kept his Chelsea captaincy and made sure that he guided them on to win the FA Cup title. I’m pretty sure the FA has seen the irony in their actions. He got selected in the Euro 2012 team, and I’m sure once again that FA must have so badly wanted to stick a huge facepalm meme poster on the walls of Wembley.

A racist? Think again. He captains the team that is known as the heart of Africa with the largest number of black players in a Premier League side. People say things in the heat of the moment and I am sure some of you might have actually done that yourself. Have you ever been taken to court for that?

Everything said and done, John Terry is a fighter and a fighter that I’m proud to have as the captain of the football team I love. One who just does not know when it is the right-time to give up and will go down by giving his all. Never write of him off because he will definitely bounce back.

CAPTAIN- Captain of Captains. The man whose few words raises the morale of the team. Who lifted the team in 2005 against Barcelona and also gave the team-talk instead of Di Matteo against Napoli.

LEADER - One who wears the blue with pride and leads the team out with only victory in his eyes. Reminds the players to kiss the badge and then point towards the name at the back.

LEGEND – Your hates only makes him stronger. Loved by his fans, hated by the opposition. It’s just about time he got his own statue at the Bridge. Will always be remembered as the first Roman commander.

Words are not enough to tell how much a Chelsea fan respects you, but we honestly don’t care what others think. You always silence your critics and we are all ready to blindly follow your path as you fight back against the one who cut you off at every step.