Full name: John George Terry
Born: Barking, London. December 7, 1980
Position: Defender
Height/weight: 1.87m/90 kgs
Squad number:
Club: Chelsea
Caps: 60
Goals: 6
World Cup appearances: 5 (2006)
World Cup 2010 qualification: 8 appearances/1 goal
In light of the Wayne Bridge scandal, the current Chelsea and former England captain should feel fortunate to be going to the World Cup at all. Had Bridge not fallen on his sword, or had Fabio Capello taken a dimmer view of Terry’s off-pitch indiscretions, the Italian would have been left facing an extremely difficult quandary.
As it is, of course, Capello decided that all such matters are personal and should not affect his ability to pick his strongest defence for the finals in South Africa.
Despite his assertions to the contrary, Terry was not at his defiant, doughty best this past season. He was exposed time and again by Louis Saha for Everton in February and has not looked the same since, dismissed against Tottenham - another game in which he hardly looked comfortable - and tormented by Samuel Eto’o and Diego Milito in Chelsea’s Champions League exit to Inter.
Terry, even off form, remains far better than any of the realistic alternatives to Capello - considering the lingering doubts over Ledley King’s suitability for tournament football - but the Italian will no doubt be employing the best of his abilities to get Terry back to something like his old self before the tournament starts.
Fact: Terry's older brother, Paul, plays for Rushden & Diamonds.
Career high: PFA player of the year 2004/05; leading Chelsea to back-to-back Premier League titles in 2004/05 and 2005/06.
Career low: Tearful end to 2008 Champions League final in Moscow, when missed penalty in shoot-out cost Chelsea victory over Manchester United.
Search for John Terry news on Telegraph.co.uk.
