Why Capello was right to remove Terry

Many Media critics have posed the question "Why should we care about John Terry's affair?". They have good reason - he's a fantastic footballer who can perform regardless of what he does in the bedroom. Now this argument would stand firm for a player like Joey Barton - he has already lost all credibility as a role model, does not hold a position of authority and has no responsibility beyond the football pitch. John Terry however, is captain of his club and country. He is supposed to lead the players and should therefore command respect from the England team and have a good relationship with all of them.

Terry holds the position coveted by schoolboys across the country: captain of the national football team. Terry's behaviour will always be taken as an example, that is the price of being England captain. It is also a job that the media, beyond the back pages, follow closely. Therefore as a football fan it pains me to see the ultimate game further its playboy image, while rugby continues with its (perhaps unjust) gentlemanly reputation. The general attention on Terry is a reason why it is particularly damaging for him to court bad publicity, but it is not why he was fired.

JT, as his team mates call him, has not just cheated on his wife, that would be a family matter. What he has done is a family matter too, but it is also a footballing manager. He has caused irreversible damage to his dressing room reputation. The obvious point is that he has created a rift between himself and fellow England Defender, Wayne Bridge. Will he still play with Terry? Probably, but he is likely to have less respect for him, both damaging Terry's position a captain and the workings of the back four. I've heard it suggested that if Bridge has a problem with Terry, he should be left out of the England team. Sad as it is, he's far less valuable than Terry and Ashley Cole is the first choice left back, with Leighton Baines also in the running. Terry's damaged relationship with Bridge, although a factor, is still not the main reason why Terry has rendered himself an unsuitable captain.

Bridge is more to Terry than a team mate, he is regarded as one of Terry's best friends in the game. If Terry will do that to Wayne Bridge, why should any of the England players trust him. He will not have the same position in the dressing room which may be cold towards him, showing less trust less respect and less willingness to cooperate with him. If any players, most likely the Man city contingent - Lescott, Barry, Richards and Wright-Phillips, choose to take Bridge's side, he may experience difficult relationships with them and they are likely to spread this discontent. It is often said of managers that if the lose the dressing room they must leave, I think it is also true of a captain. To be a leader of men you must be an honourable man. Terry is not. It is for these reasons that he in unfit to captain his country and by punishing him , Capello may be able to stifle the displeasure of the remainder of the squad and allow them to feel justice to be done.

Terry's replacement? Ferdinand has progressed from Vice captain to captain, and third in command Gerrard is now vice captain. Personally I would prefer to see Gerrard in the role - his appointment as Liverpool captain was followed by a massive raise in him game- but I'm fairly Happy with Ferdinand. I believe that the captain should be the player in best position to lead the team rather than the best player(Rooney would be a terrible captain - great player but likes a tantrum).

So there it is. Rio Ferdinand will be the man to lead England out against the USA in June? But can he lift the Trophy in Johannesburg?