Slipperduke
The Camden Cad
I don’t believe in fairies, I don’t believe in miracles and, to be honest with you, I’ve still not made my mind up on the whole God thing, but I’ll tell you what I do believe in. I believe in Football Karma. It surrounds us, penetrates us, and binds the galaxy together. On Saturday evening, it bit John Terry on the bottom.
I was at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday night and I was as surprised as everyone else when John Terry was able to control the ball with his arm in the penalty area and get away with it. Well, not as surprised as Bolton’s assistant manager Sandy Stewart who let rip like an Icelandic mountain range, but you know what I mean. It was handball and Bolton were right to feel robbed. But it wasn’t Terry’s arm that invoked the furious wrath of Football Karma. It was the interview he gave afterwards.
“I don’t know what it looked like on TV,” said Terry, “but it certainly felt like it came off my chest.” Did it? Really? If Terry feels something in his chest when the ball hits his arm, I’d suggest a trip to the doctor, sharpish.
Football Karma isn’t always nasty. Sometimes it can be life-affirming like when a former player scores against the club that let him go as a schoolboy. Or it can be just, like when a time-wasting team with a one-nil lead concedes a late equaliser and suddenly finds themselves facing seven minutes of stoppage time. At White Hart Lane, however, Football Karma had a serious strop on.
Terry conceded a penalty when a ball was blasted at him from close range, his team came off the rails and lost 1-2 and he was sent off for a second bookable offence when he clattered into Gareth Bale.
If he’d only admitted to the handball on Tuesday, then none of this would have happened. Would he have felt any less of a man had he simply acknowledged that he got a bit lucky against Bolton?
I doubt many people will feel sorry for Terry given his past record, but as an Englishman I just hope he’s learned an important lesson before the World Cup. It doesn’t matter who you are, how much you earn, or whose girlfriend you’ve bumped uglies with. You don’t mess with Football Karma.
QUOTE - “We know what we have to do in the next three games. We must not have a panic now.” - Carlo Ancelotti tries to talk Roman Abramovich off a ledge.
I was at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday night and I was as surprised as everyone else when John Terry was able to control the ball with his arm in the penalty area and get away with it. Well, not as surprised as Bolton’s assistant manager Sandy Stewart who let rip like an Icelandic mountain range, but you know what I mean. It was handball and Bolton were right to feel robbed. But it wasn’t Terry’s arm that invoked the furious wrath of Football Karma. It was the interview he gave afterwards.
“I don’t know what it looked like on TV,” said Terry, “but it certainly felt like it came off my chest.” Did it? Really? If Terry feels something in his chest when the ball hits his arm, I’d suggest a trip to the doctor, sharpish.
Football Karma isn’t always nasty. Sometimes it can be life-affirming like when a former player scores against the club that let him go as a schoolboy. Or it can be just, like when a time-wasting team with a one-nil lead concedes a late equaliser and suddenly finds themselves facing seven minutes of stoppage time. At White Hart Lane, however, Football Karma had a serious strop on.
Terry conceded a penalty when a ball was blasted at him from close range, his team came off the rails and lost 1-2 and he was sent off for a second bookable offence when he clattered into Gareth Bale.
If he’d only admitted to the handball on Tuesday, then none of this would have happened. Would he have felt any less of a man had he simply acknowledged that he got a bit lucky against Bolton?
I doubt many people will feel sorry for Terry given his past record, but as an Englishman I just hope he’s learned an important lesson before the World Cup. It doesn’t matter who you are, how much you earn, or whose girlfriend you’ve bumped uglies with. You don’t mess with Football Karma.
QUOTE - “We know what we have to do in the next three games. We must not have a panic now.” - Carlo Ancelotti tries to talk Roman Abramovich off a ledge.
Last edited:
