Who is the best central defender in the Premier League this season? It has to be a 34-year-old veteran whose club contract runs out at the end of this campaign – although the announcement of a 12-month extension will be made any day now – but who has no chance of playing for his country during this or any other international break.
It has to be John Terry.
It will be interesting to see if Terry’s fellow professionals agree and whether he has garnered any votes when it comes to electing the PFA Player of the Year – the ballot papers are in. Or, more relevantly, whether he has even made their Premier League team of the season. It has been a long time since the Chelsea captain did.
Not since 2005-06, in fact, has Terry been recognised by his peers as one of the two best central defenders in the Premier League - a remarkable statistic. Terry was in the PFA team of the year for three successive seasons up to then but has not made it since. That is eight years since he was chosen as one of the two best centre-halves in English football.
Since 2006 the players have elected Rio Ferdinand four times, Nemanja Vidic four times (with the former Manchester United defenders selected as a pair on three occasions), Vincent Kompany three times and Gary Cahill, Fabricio Coloccini, Jan Vertonghen, Thomas Vermaelen and Richard Dunne once each. But not Terry.
Defenders named in PFA Team of the Year since 2007
| Player | Nominations |
|---|---|
| Vidic | 4 |
| Ferdinand | 4 |
| Evra | 3 |
| Kompany | 3 |
| Sagna | 2 |
| Baines | 2 |
| G Neville | 1 |
| Clichy | 1 |
| Johnson | 1 |
| Ivanovic | 1 |
| Vermaelen | 1 |
| Dunne | 1 |
| A Cole | 1 |
| Walker | 1 |
| Coloccini | 1 |
| Baines | 1 |
| Zabaleta | 1 |
| Vertonghen | 1 |
| Coleman | 1 |
| Cahill | 1 |
| Shaw | 1 |
Yet, Terry was voted in the Uefa Team of the Year on three occasions – in 2007, 2008 and 2009 – in a poll conducted among fans and not players, with the bulk of those supporters coming from outside England. In those same years he was also in the FifPro World XI which is voted for by players.
Why has Terry been overlooked in the Premier League? Given his remarkable consistency, it is difficult not to conclude that he is a figure who divides opinion between the players as much he has done in the media and among supporters.
Terry, like Jose Mourinho perhaps, is admired but not liked beyond Stamford Bridge. Jamie Carragher recently remarked that Mourinho’s achievements in the game are respected, that he could become the most successful manager of all time, but that he would not be “loved” beyond the clubs he has been at.
Blue-chip defender: John Terry clears from Edinson Cavani
That probably holds true for most successful managers. But for players? Most footballers of Terry's longevity do generate affection and respect outside their clubs - think Ryan Giggs, Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard. But in the case of Terry the opposite is true, and presumably can be attributed to his private life, his personal behaviour and the accusation that he racially abused Anton Ferdinand, a charge of which he was acquitted in court but not by the Football Association.
But if Terry's popularity is in doubt, his quality is not. He has been and is a remarkable defender who has astonishing powers of recovery, single-mindedness and resilience. And he can defend in an era when there is a dearth of defenders. That has highlighted his qualities even more.
True blue: John Terry is popular at Chelsea, but not beyond
Manchester City have spent £42million on Eliaquim Mangala; Manchester United are unsure as to whether or not Mats Hummels is worth the £30million Borussia Dortmund would demand for him and every leading club would jump at the chance to sign Raphael Varane even though he is only on the bench at Real Madrid.
There is not only a premium on centre-halves in the way there used to only be on strikers, which has driven the prices up, but there is an increasing lack of options. It is a dying trade. Clubs are scratching around to find players capable of playing the position.
With England there is Gary Cahill, Phil Jagielka, Chris Smalling and Phil Jones in Roy Hodgson’s current squad with John Stones being held back for the under-21s. But there are few other options beyond that small group. Gone are the days when England could take Carragher, Ferdinand, Sol Campbell and Terry to a World Cup as they did in 2006 with Ledley King missing out through injury.
Three of those outstanding players have retired while Ferdinand is seeing out his career at Queens Park Rangers - which leaves Terry as the last man standing from that generation who is still playing at the very top level - for his club, at least.
There is no way back for Terry with England which remains best for all parties. It should also be remembered that it was Terry who absented himself from selection by deciding to retire from international football after the Ferdinand case. His exile is self-imposed.
A personal view is that Terry was right to retire from England. It was the correct time for him to go. I also believe he was fortunate not to lose – at least temporarily – the Chelsea captaincy but that does not mean he cannot be praised for how well he has played this season.
Memory: John Terry has exiled himself from international duty
Harry Kane, the league’s top scorer and man of the moment, recently said Terry was the hardest defender he has faced so far in his career after his performance in the Capital One Cup final. Kane had given Terry the run-around in Spurs' 5-3 win at White Hart Lane on New Year’s Day and was not going to be allowed to do that again. “It taught me what a brilliant defender he is, so much experience,” Kane said.
Terry has not been sent off for five seasons and been booked only once this campaign in the Premier League and only five times in the past three years.
According to Opta statistics he has already won 38 tackles compared to 29 last season and has conceded just nine fouls. He has won more tackles, more headers, made more blocks, more clearances, more headed clearances, more passes and created more chances than Cahill, Jones and Smalling. In fairness Jagielka’s stats are impressive but that also probably reflects the increased amount of defending the Everton captain has had to do.
Terry has also shown impressive powers of recovery. In 2012-13 he only played 14 Premier League games, only starting 11 of them. He has also suffered bad dips in form when he has appeared vulnerable to pace and clumsy and when it seemed a history of injuries was catching up on him.
Hurting: John Terry has remained a fixture at Chelsea despite dips in form
Andre Villas-Boas’ high defensive line did not suit him. Rafael Benitez did not regard him as first-choice.
Terry also appears to have backed away from the quasi-managerial role that he appeared to hanker after and has concentrated on playing football for as long as he can although he has also taken a keen interest in the development of young players at Chelsea, such as Kurt Zouma - a player who may eventually replace him.
Terry has been motivated by Mourinho and by Chelsea’s policy of only offering 12-month extensions to players in their 30s and has also been helped by the breaks he can take – such as now – during the international periods.
It has been a remarkable comeback by Terry and one that he should be recognised for. Hopefully he will finally return to that PFA team of the year even if he will no longer be in the England team.
0 nhận xét:
Đăng nhận xét