John Terry is already ineligible for the UEFA Champions League final. What remains to be seen is if he'll have to miss any time in European competitions next season.
Terry was given a straight red card for his knee to the back of Alexis Sanchez in the first half of Tuesday's 2-2 draw at Barcelona, and a UEFA panel will meet on May 31 to determine whether to increase the ban from the automatic one-game suspension.
"Sanchez was darting in behind me, I've seen the replay and it does look bad, but I'm not the type of player to go out and intentionally hurt anyone," Terry told reporters following the match. "I've raised my knee, which I shouldn't have done in hindsight, but hopefully the people out there that know me, as a player and a person, know I'm not like that.
"At the time, I was bewildered because I was trying to protect myself a little bit, but looking at it on the replay, I've no complaints."
Here are a few more stories from around the soccer world:
NOVARA SHOCK LAZIO AS SERIE A RACE HEATS UP
Lazio's plans on participating in next season's UEFA Champions League have taken a bit of a detour.
Despite facing relegation-bound Novara, Lazio dropped a 2-1 result on Wednedsay and now lead Napoli for third place by a single point with four matches remaining in the season. The loss also opens the door for Inter Milan and Udinese, who trail Lazio by three points as they make a late surge for Europe.
Inter put themselves back in position by dealing Udinese a 3-1 loss Wednesday on the strength of two Wesley Sneijder goals. Although Roma fell to Fiorentina on Wednesday, they are still in the hunt as well, trailing Lazio by five points. All of those teams have no shot at catching Juventus and AC Milan, who have been the two runaway Scudetto contenders for weeks.
MARADONA THREATENS TO QUIT AL WASL
If the necessary funds aren't freed up by the summer transfer window, Diego Maradona could walk away from his post as coach of United Arab Emirates side Al Wasl.
That is the threat that the former Argentine legend has reportedly made to his employers, something they've heard before. Maradona made a similar threat during the winter transfer period over the same issue.
''I will be ready to leave if I cannot get the players I want,'' Maradona said. ''If I can't compete, there is no reason to continue. If the players are too expensive or the club lacks of budget, maybe then my leaving the club will be easier on them. They will be able to keep the funds for the players and then invest it in something else they require.''
CHELSEA RECEIVE £45 MILLION FOR MAKING FINAL
Fernando Torres' goal Tuesday not only clinched Chelsea's place in the Champions League final, it also almost covers the entire transfer fee the club spent to acquire him from Liverpool.
Chelsea will receive £45 million in television money alone for reaching the UCL final, nearly matching the £50 million it spent to purchase Torres. That revenue number could grow as well, depending on ticket and merchandise sales and additional sponsors.
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How long of a ban do you think Terry deserves for his red card? Who do you see capturing the third and final UCL spot in Serie A? Think Maradona is bluffing? What should Chelsea do with all that extra cash?
Share your thoughts below.
Ban this racist
Glad to see Torres scored. Maybe his biggest goal of his career next to the goal in the 2008 European Championship final. Hopefully this re-starts his career
Uh, John Harkes sound familiar?
ehhhhh….sarchasm?
Ray Lewis was convicted of giving misleading statements to the police, i.e obstructing justice, over his alleged involvment in the stabbing deaths of Baker and Lollar.
This does not compare to what Carruth did who was found guilty of conspiracy to commit murder and fgiven 18 to 24 years.
I’m sure you know a lot more about the East End than I do so tell me if any of the footballers who have come from there have been convicted of soliciting murder? Or convicted of manslaughter in shooting his driver like Jayson Williams of the Nets?
I could go on and on but the point is I’m just talking about the athletes and the wrongs they have done.
You seem to be angry about a whole strata of Britsh society, which you see Terry as being a representative of.
Not the same thing at all. No comparison.
right. in Scotsrussiarealmanistan they still play with clubs.
get over yourself.
+1
BS- I am half Brit/ half american and live on and off in both countries. All athletes for the most part are spoiled brats in both countries.
It just Terry is a uniquely English type of pathological liar/lout who comes out of East End London in great numbers. If I where Chelsea player I would look to Lampard as my captain. Now there is a player who leads by example and he came through the West Ham system so it is not impossible to come in east London and have a conscious and behave like a gentlemen. Not some racist brute who sleeps with his friends fiance, uses racial epitaphs on the pitch and off, knees a player in the back in the most important match of the season for no apparent reason, then deny s it until the video evidence is indisputable and then comes up with some convoluted reason for doing so etc. etc. ad nausea m.
Sell him to Milwall or better yet give him to them on free transfer so he can be with his people. He is incapable of self examination for his multiple errors and indiscretions so he should go back where that kind of behavior is standard fare.
Apparently you don’t the British social strata and it’s various nuances very well at all.
PS: for every Rae Carruth you/we have 5 Warrick Dunn’s, Derrick Brooks, Jason Taylors
and Danny Wuerffel. Even Ray Lewis turned his life around.
Did you see the US Under 23 game vs El Salvador? I’ll bet you would not have been opposed to Shea doing something similar to El Salvador.
Instead our Under 23 team thought like you did, that they had it all wrapped up and all they had to do was hang on.
Before Torres scored there was still enough time for Barca to pull something off like that and don’t tell me it would have been impossible.
Torres’ goal put the nail in the coffin, something you have to do to a team like Barca.
If you find John Terry an unpleasant athlete and person I guess you don’t follow US sports very much.
Over here we have guys ( like Rae Carruth a Carolina Panther,who hired someone to kill the pregnant mother of his child)who make him look like a misguided school yard bully.
None of these Brit soccer players would make a ripple here when it comes to bad behavior.
You know an American soccer player would never sleep with his teamate’s girl nor would they ever commit a bad foul.
Thank god Terry wasn’t eligible for the US.
it took the meaning out of Barca’s final attacks in stoppage time. After the Torres tally, Barca would’ve somehow needed 2 goals in the space of the minute. I see your point that Chelsea still could have won without it. However, while it wasn’t the tie-winning goal, it could definitely be called the “clinching” goal because it gave Barca no road back.
++1
It was nice to see Torres score, but I agree that it was icing on the cake. The real goal that mattered was that great run and finish from Rameris.
Torres’ goal was meaningless. How did it clinch the final berth?
John Terry – you can take an east London boy and move him to West London but you will never take the East London stupid thug out of the man.
He is, and always has been, a stupid, self deluded east thug with a thought in his head who only acts on pure animal instincts.
Bring back East Enders and plug him in and you got instant racist wife beater and protection collector. Or maybe the next Guy Richie east crime caper film.
Yes- I hate him – and with that being said I was and am pulling for Chelsea to bring home the cup because I am EPL man straight down the line even though they play right next to my beloved Fulham
For a number of reasons (especially as an American), John Terry is associated with being a scumbag.
To be honest, I don’t disagree with the reasoning of why Terry felt the need to give Sanchez a true reason to fall to the ground after dramatically falling when his upper body was touched.
However, I do disagree with the method. Had Terry sent a message with a “hard” tackle that was legal but with obvious intent, I would have been 100% ok with that.
Perhaps it’s just the non-soccer side of me but Terry’s mentality is on point with how I felt upon seeing Sanchez dive, too. Unfortunately, Terry was incredibly ignorant on how he implemented his “policing” of the dive and how soon he choose to do it.
I’m not a fan of either team and I completely agree with Terry’s red card/ejection. However, I completely agree with his reasoning and policing if the refs aren’t going to disuade the diving that Barca are becoming far too eager at doing.
If you understand where I’m coming from, you were probably the person on your team that did the same. If you don’t, you had a teammate that did and everyone knows who it was.
Also a Blues fan and also completely agree. There are honest mistakes and then there are intentional fouls. If this were the NBA that would be a flagrant.
as a diehard Blues fan, I agree. The problem is that the English Chelsea fans and many international fans love him. I don’t get it, he is a pig, probably a nasty bigot, and a thug.
But aye, Ladson, I agree.
Off the ball, clearly intentional, a red…easy call. Additional suspension is more debatable, the red isn’t.
If he had been going for the ball from behind and made that kind of contact, I agree, a yellow.
but hopefully the people out there that know me, as a player and a person, know I’m not like that.” That’s rich…how about I’m like sleep with your babies momma, call my good friends brother racist names but would never stoop so low as to intentionally plant my knee in the back of someone. Terry and World Peace my daft athletes of the week.LOL
Oh no not a knee in the back! Only in Europe.
+ 1
‘On and off the field’ is right. A disgrace to Chelsea, and to the game.
Not sure its an added suspension. Seen ankle breaking tackles that were never punished with anything more than a 1 game suspension. Yes it was dumb, but it was not dangerous.
+1
I’m not a fan of Chelsea and/or Terry, but are we really giving out red cards for that now? For sure a yellow.
ah come on Terry was just playing a prank on his pal “hey Alexis, ever been humped by a rhino?”
+1
Its pretty insane John Terry is still the captain of anything
As an avid Chelsea fan, I am ready for the club to part ways with John Terry. This recent red card incident is just one of many intentional acts Terry has committed against opponents during the course of play. There is no room in the game of soccer for players of his type, and I would like to see Chelsea take a stand against him. Terry should not be Captain, and I believe the club should, at the very least, remove him from the 1st team, if not the club altogether. His character and conduct on/off the field is a disgrace to the club and its proud history.
‘as a player and a person, know I’m not like that.’ – I dont know if Terry should stick with that quote if he wants that suspension overturned.