Chelsea captain more likely to move in with Bridge than to Turkey

There hasn’t been much in the way of good news for Chelsea of late. First it was the Eva Carneiro scandal, then came the 3-0 defeat to title rivals Manchester City. Now it’s the fallout from skipper John Terry being hooked off at half time in that match.

If there is one manager in the Premier League that is used to dealing with negative press it’s Jose Mourinho, but even the Special One’s greying head must be spinning from all the storms supposedly brewing around Stamford Bridge.

Or at least it would be, if some of those issues actually resembled problems.

The Portuguese tactician’s handling of his doctor has rightly demanded wide coverage since Mourinho unnecessarily blew his top at Carneiro on the opening day of the season.

However the loss to City and the removal of John Terry do not warrant anywhere near as much airtime.

Yes the defeat to Manuel Pellegrini’s side was alarming, but it occurred so early on in the season that it is nothing more than a small graze in the Blues’ title aspirations.

Immediately after the defeat, Mourinho explained that the decision to bench his captain, who he had never taken off previously in two spells managing the former England defender, was tactical.

That is his job; to make decisions that will best help his side win a game.

Yet there is now endless chatter about whether this is the end of the road for Terry at Chelsea, if he will be sold before the transfer window closes or if he will even start another game for the only Premier League club he’s ever represented.

Rumours suggesting Fenerbahce, the recently anointed retirement home for the Premier League’s golden era, will land a shock £2.5m swoop for the centre-back are ludicrous.

Why would Mourinho decide to sell the man that has been a cornerstone of all his success at Chelsea, a player that played every minute of the club’s league-winning campaign last season and was widely tipped as the best defender in the division?

All because in one half of football against a title rival Terry looked off the pace? That’s a consequence of a 17-year career in the top flight. It’s certainly not a sackable offence, especially considering the actual sackable offences Terry has gotten away with.

The poor performance cost the 34-year-old his place for the second half, but it won’t have cost him his Stamford Bridge career.

Chelsea will look to lick their wounds with a trip to West Brom next in the Premier League, with Ladbrokes making them 4/6 to win.

All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.

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