Paul Ince believes that John Terry is the last of a dying breeds of “leaders” in football as modern dressing rooms are too quiet to contain big characters.
The Chelsea captain has developed a controversial reputation throughout his career for his often frank approach, but has also been backed for his leadership skills by several leading managers for club and country.
Indeed Fabio Capello was to resign as England manager in 2012 over the issue of Terry’s captaincy of the national team.
Last season the 34-year-old was an ever-present in Jose Mourinho’s title-winning side, earning a first spot in the PFA Team of the Year since 2006. However Terry’s personal fortunes have followed those of his struggling team this season, with the centre-back struggling to rediscover his best form in a Chelsea side currently languishing in 14th place.
For Ince, though, Terry represents a vital presence in the Chelsea dressing room and one of the only vocal presences left in the English game.
Ince, speaking exclusively to 888poker.com ahead of the West Ham v Manchester United fixture this weekend, explained: “When you look at people such as myself, [Tony] Adams, [Patrick] Vieira, [Emmanuel] Petit, [Bryan] Robson, [Alan] Shearer…we were brought up in tough upbringings and had to fight to be a footballer.
“The way that society has changed - with Facebook and Twitter and all the rest of it - players are too soft. You can’t tackle anymore and people dive and roll over. These players aren’t building character.
“I think that John Terry is probably the last of these leaders and it’s an era we won’t ever see again. Teams these days are so quiet.”
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Terry’s team-mate Diego Costa has been the focus of much controversy this week after throwing his bib in the direction of Jose Mourinho during Sunday’s 0-0 draw away to Tottenham.
Ince believes that the club captain would never do the same.
“If that had been John Terry there is no way he would have thrown his bib at Mourinho. Absolutely no chance. That’s because he’s a great captain and leader and it’s not just about John Terry, it’s about Chelsea Football Club.”
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“When you see Diego Costa do something like that I find it disrespectful towards one of the greatest managers of all time in Mourinho. To behave in that way doesn’t show leadership or respect and not just to Mourinho but to the players on the bench and the fans. That’s the last thing Chelsea need at this moment in time to be in the back pages again and just because a player is unhappy at not coming on.”
Read the full and frank interview – including Ince’s views on Louis Van Gaal and modern-day midfielders – here.
