Chelsea and former-England skipper John Terry has ruled out a return to the England line-up as he believes Phil Jones and Chris Smalling are both three times the player that he is.
Speaking to our reporters just a day after Chelsea’s league cup win over Spurs, Terry reveals that he feels outclassed by England’s new crop of centre-backs.
“Have you seen Jonesy or Chris play recently?” he scoffed. “Both are players in another league to myself. Phil Jones has such an eye for defensive duties and Chris is so graceful in possession. Do I believe I would be selected over them? Not at all.”
Both Jones and Smalling have come under criticism this season for their role in Manchester United’s hazardous back-line, which has found itself constantly under fire for a lack of confidence and structure. But Terry believes the young English centre-backs are going from strength to strength.
“Louis van Gaal had the money to buy another centre-back other than Marcos Rojo last summer and again in January. He didn’t and I think he made absolutely the right decision. Jones and Smalling are undoubtedly world class players – a modern-day Beckenbauer and Schwarzenbeck. With them in defence, England stand a real chance of winning a major trophy in the next few years. And Manchester United? They are extremely lucky to have them. What about Hummels and Laporte? I’d keep Jones and Smalling any day.”
The only footballer in history to have lost the captain’s armband twice, Terry had a long England career but found little success. His decision to retire from the international scene in 2012 was publically stated as a response to the Anton Ferdinand racism hearing but we asked him again whether this was truly his motivation.
“I’ll be honest,” he grinned, with a wink, “The team was shocking. Jonesy and Smalling weren’t fully integrated then and the team was awful. If I’d stuck around, they’d only have dragged me down too. Let’s face it, we were always going to be terrible in the Brazil World Cup. I jumped ship while I still could.”
Chelsea fans will undoubtedly be disappointed to learn an England return is off the cards for their illustrious captain, but England as a whole continues to look forward to a bright and successful future.
The Story: Chelsea captain rules out England return
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