Chelsea under fire for keeping John Terry’s racial abuse punishment secret
John Terry's punishment is being kept confidential by Chelsea
Chelsea came under fire today for keeping their punishment of John Terry secret after the defender accepted a four-match ban and £220,000 fine from the Football Association for racially abusing QPR’s Anton Ferdinand.
• Chelsea insist punishment will stay confidential but he remains as captain
• FA says former England captain called QPR’s Anton Ferdinand a “f****** black c***”
The club are understood to have handed Terry a further fine but he will remain as club captain and will not have any further suspension.
Terry has apologised for the language he used towards Ferdinand, although he does not specifically direct his apology to Ferdinand.
Chelsea have insisted that their internal action against Terry will remain confidential, as have past disciplinary cases involving their players.
Lord Herman Ouseley, chairman of football’s equality group Kick It Out, said that stance could damage Chelsea in the eyes of those people who had been waiting many months to see how the club handled the case.
Ouseley said: “I believe Chelsea need to be open about the action they have taken.
“A lot of people will be dissatisfied that Chelsea have not been much more up front about the standards they set and the values they have.
“If they are not prepared to say, it will further damage the trust of those people who still have suspicions about Chelsea’s sincerity in dealing this matter.
“I do welcome what they have said, but they need to be saying more and doing more if they are going to win back the confidence of people who have lost trust in them rather than to sit back and be silent.”
Chelsea released a statement today saying that Terry’s language was not acceptable.
The statement said: “The board has taken further disciplinary action in addition to the four-match suspension and £220,000 fine imposed by the FA. In accordance with our long-standing policy, that disciplinary action will remain confidential.”
Chelsea added: “Chelsea Football Club believes John Terry has made the correct decision by not appealing against the FA judgment relating to language he used at the QPR match last October.
“Chelsea also appreciates, and supports, John’s full apology for the language he used. The club firmly believes such language is not acceptable and fell below the standards expected of John as a Chelsea player.”
The FA suspension means Terry will miss Chelsea’s games against Tottenham, two against Manchester United – Premier League and Capital One Cup – and Swansea.
It also means he will not be involved in any games during Kick It Out’s week of action which will start tomorrow.
Terry was found guilty by the independent FA regulatory commission of calling Ferdinand a “f****** black c***” during a Barclays Premier League match between Chelsea and QPR on 23 October last year.
In July, he was cleared in Westminster Magistrates Court of a racially aggravated public order offence.
In a statement released via his representatives Elite Management, Terry said: “After careful consideration, I have decided not to appeal against the FA judgment.
“I want to take this opportunity to apologise to everyone for the language I used in the game against Queens Park Rangers last October.
“Although I’m disappointed with the FA judgment, I accept that the language I used, regardless of the context, is not acceptable on the football field or indeed in any walk of life.”
Terry’s statement continued: “As I stated in the criminal case, with the benefit of hindsight my language was clearly not an appropriate reaction to the situation for someone in my position. My response was below the level expected by Chelsea Football Club, and by me, and it will not happen again.
“Looking forward, I will continue to do my part in assisting the club to remove all types of discriminatory behaviour from football.
“I am extremely grateful for the consistent support of Chelsea FC, the fans and my family.”
The three-man commission had ruled there was “no credible basis” for Terry’s claim he had only been repeating words he thought QPR defender Ferdinand had accused him of saying, and labelled his defence “improbable, implausible and contrived”.
The commission also questioned why Terry’s team-mate Ashley Cole had changed his statement to give more support to Terry’s story, sparking a furious response from the Chelsea and England defender who described the FA as a “bunch of t***s” in a tweet sent on 5 October.
Cole issued a full apology later that day and admitted a misconduct charge which led to an FA fine today of £90,000. He too is subject to internal action from Chelsea.
Meanwhile, Chelsea will respond to the FA regarding criticism by the commission panel of club secretary Dave Barnard’s evidence and involvement in the changes to the statement made by Cole.
The club are adamant that Barnard has done no wrong and intend to address the situation with the FA.
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Thursday 23 May 2013
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