John Terry Race Row: The Sun Turns Chelsea Captain Into Mad Dog Gaddafi
JOHN Terry Race Row: The Sun turns the Chelsea captain into Colonel Gaddafi.
Sun (back page): “JT: WORLD BACKS ME – I’ve had support across the planet!”
The Sun does it’s best to make the Chelsea captain appear delusional – football’s answer to Colonel Gaddafi just before his capture.
At yesterday’s England press conference, Terry performed well. It was the first time he had spoken to the press since since the racism allegations aired. An FA wonk acting as Minster for Information prevented journalists from asking questions about the matter. Well, almost, because one did contrive to ask:
“John I’ve known you for years – you’re not a racist are you?”
The question was batted away. And then Terry, sitting uprights and looking directly out, said he loved playing for England. He used to dream about it – “as I am sure everybody in this room did“.
With that Terry had built a bridge between the hacks and the platform. And no-one shouted out:
“But that’s why your behaviour matters, JT. You’re living our dream. You have to behave well, look honest, honourable, trustworthy and decent. Your holding a sharp pin to our thought bubble.”
Back in the Sun, Charlie Wyett records what Terry said about being supported by “the planet”:
“I don’t want to talk about people individually and stuff. But from across the world, people and players and managers have been on the phone and been very supportive of me.”
That’s not exactly the megalomaniacal “WORLD BACKS ME” is it?
You can understand why Terry does not want to talk about an ongoing police and FA investigation that holds the potential to end his career. Whatever he says will be presented as being wrong.
What he did say was:
“The easy thing to do would have been to step away from it. But I am here, fronting it up and dealing with it today. Unfortunately I can’t speak — we all understand that with the police and the FA, I can’t speak about things. But I’m here and I’m very proud to be England captain. I’m not someone to hide away.”
Adding:
“But it was nice, as I warmed up down the touchline, to get app-lauded by the England fans. I was quite happy as I didn’t know what to expect. It has probably put me at ease.”
See. He can do humble.
John Ashdown and Evan Fanning, The Guardian:
It was an interesting idea from the FA’s media department, putting up the one player that everybody wants to talk to and then not allowing him to talk about the one thing that everybody wants to talk about. It’s a bit like inviting Dr Bruce Banner to talk to the media but then preventing any discussion about his anger issues or making Jamie face the press and then banning all questions about his magic torch.
Odd to compare the England football team to watching children’s TV? Maybe, Terry can play with a glove puppet on one hand and win over the kids?
Nov 9 – John Terry: Sun Says QPR’s Anton Ferdinand Wants To Shoot Chelsea Captain John Terry
Posted: 15th, November 2011 | In: Sports Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
