Following his penalty miss in Moscow, albeit not the deciding penalty, John Terry has felt the need to take the blame for the defeat squarely on his shoulders, issuing a public apology to everyone connected to Chelsea. In an open letter on the club’s website, John says:

“I am so sorry for missing the penalty and denying you the fans, my team-mates, family and friends the chance to become European champions. Many people have told me I don`t need to say that but I feel I need to, that`s just me.”

“I have relived that moment every minute since it happened. I have only slept a few hours and wake up every time hoping it`s all been a bad dream. I walked forward to take the kick knowing that it was there to be won and it was all down to me. What happened next will haunt me for the rest of my life. I have watched it again on TV, you can see I slipped and I still can`t believe it.”

“I have had some amazing support from fans, current players, family and friends and I need to thank everyone for that. But I am a big man and I take responsibility for us not winning. I am and ALWAYS will be Chelsea through and through. I will give my all on and off the pitch to win this trophy as a player and one day as a manager. And I am sure we will win it.”

“I feel I have let everybody down and this hurts more me more than anything. I am not ashamed about crying. This is a trophy I have tried so hard year after year to win and it was jus an uncontrollable reaction. I wear my heart on my sleeve, and everybody knows that. The road to Rome starts here, we have to try and turn this to our advantage.”

“I am very proud of how far we have come this season with everything that has gone on. Thank you for all your support for the team this season”

Now whilst I can see why he might have felt the need to get that off his chest, I’m not so sure of the wisdom in doing it so publicly. It may well have been on the club site, but no-one’s naive enough to think it won’t be bandied about in the press within minutes. To us Terry has absolutely nothing to apologise for, after all, with a certain Frenchman dragging his heels, it was the captain who had the balls to put himself forward for the ultimate pressure. And if, as the opposition seem to delight in suggesting, his miss was the sign of a ‘bottler’, then perhaps the ‘world’s best player’ needs to check his backbone as well?

Filed under: Current Players, Rants