Terry injured in double blow for chelsea title hopes

Terry injured in double blow for Chelsea's title hopes

 

The veteran defender left Stamford Bridge on crutches after a short-lived return to the Chelsea line-up, and will have a knee scan on Monday.

Terry had put Chelsea ahead in the 20th minute on his return from a four-match domestic ban for racially abusing Queens Park Rangers defender Anton Ferdinand last season. It was his 50th career goal for Chelsea.

Suarez joined Manchester United's Robin van Persie at the top of the EPL scoring charts with his eighth this season, earning Liverpool's sixth draw in 11 league outings.

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Terry's torment

Injury fear

Goal milestone

Suarez strike

(CNN) -- Chelsea's English Premier League title hopes suffered a double blow on Sunday as captain John Terry was stretchered off in a 1-1 draw at home to struggling Liverpool.

Terry had returned from a four-game domestic ban for racially abusing an opponent, and made an immediate impact as he put the London club in front in the first half.

However, the veteran defender was forced off with a knee injury after going down following a tussle with Liverpool striker Luis Suarez, who rubbed salt into Chelsea's wounds by scoring a second-half equalizer.

Terry faces a scan on Monday to determine the extent of the damage.

"He is certainly a player that is influential for us. We will miss him," Chelsea manager Roberto di Matteo said.

It is now nearly a year since Chelsea lost to QPR 1-0 in an English Premier League game at Loftus Road. During the game it was alleged QPR defender Anton Ferdinand swore at John Terry and made reference to the Chelsea captain's reported affair with the ex-partner of former team-mate Wayne Bridge. Terry is then said to have described Ferdinand as a "f***ing black c***".

In July, Terry was cleared in a London court, where the criminal burden of proof is "beyond all reasonable doubt". But the English Football Association then investigated the case, and using the test of "on the balance of probabilities", came to the conclusion that Terry's defence against claims he racially abused Ferdinand was "improbable, implausible, contrived".

Back in September, Ferdinand had declined Terry's offer of a handshake when QPR met Chelsea at Loftus Road as the feud between the two players rumbled on.

After the FA delivered the independent commission's report on the Terry case, the Chelsea captain's teammate Ashley Cole tweeted: "Hahahahaa, well done #fa I lied did I, #BUNCHOFT***S". The Chelsea and England left-back quickly issued a "unreserved apology" for his tweet through his solicitor.

In 2011 the FA had to deal with another racism case, this time handing Liverpool striker Luis Suarez an eight-match ban and a $63,000 fine after finding the Uruguayan guilty of racially abusing Manchester United defender Patrice Evra.

Suarez and Evra failed to shake hands before the start of an English Premier League game at Old Trafford last season after the Uruguayan had served his ban. However, when United beat Liverpool 2-1 at Anfield in September, the pair did shake hands.

Questions have been raised about UEFA's sanctioning policy. Denmark striker Nicklas Bendtner was fined $126,000 and banned from playing in his side's next competitive game for flashing his sponsored waistband promoting a bookmaker as he celebrated a goal against Portugal in Euro 2012. But that fine eclipsed the $52,000 fine that UEFA handed to the Bulgarian Football Union for its fans' racist abuse of England players during a Euro 2012 qualifier in Sofia in September 2011.

In November 2011, FIFA president Sepp Blatter told CNN that football did not have a problem with racism on the field and any incidents should be settled by a handshake.

The FA's Independent Regulatory Commission heard 473 cases between December 2010 and December 2011, but only two of them ended in "not guilty" verdicts.

Stoke City boss Tony Pulis wants the Football Association to punish Liverpool's Luis Suarez for diving. "It's an embarrassment," said the Stoke manager after a 0-0 draw at Anfield. "The FA should be looking at this."

Where it all began

Beyond reasonable doubt

Handshake snub

'Twatgate'

Suarez punished

The end of the affair

Fine line

Blattergate

Guilty as charged

Call to action

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Crime and Punishment in sport

Chelsea beat Bayern Munich on penalties to win the Champions League trophy for the first time in their history

Chelsea fans packed the streets around southwest London to see the victory parade

Chelsea captain John Terry was suspended for the final but lifted the trophy in Munich and was center of the celebrations again on the parade

An estimated 100,000 Chelsea fans were in Munich for the final and thousands more lined the parade route on Sunday

Roberto di Matteo has guided Chelsea to the FA Cup and Champions League, but still doesn't know if he will get the manager's job permanently

Didier Drogba, who could leave the club in the summer, scored for Chelsea to take the game into extra time and converted the winning penalty

Chelsea champions at last

Fans united in joy

Terry takes center stage

Heroes' welcome

Job done?

Drogba's defining moment

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  Chelsea parade Champions League trophy

John Terry made his Chelsea debut as a substitute against Aston Villa in 1998. After a short loan spell with second-tier Nottingham Forest, Terry established himself in the Chelsea first team during the 2000-01 English Premier League season.

Terry's impressive form was recognized in 2003 when he was handed his England debut as a substitute in a 2-1 victory over Serbia and Montenegro.

In his first full season as captain, Terry led Chelsea to a first English top-flight title in 50 years.

Chelsea sealed back-to-back Premier League titles in 2006, and in 2010 Terry became the first captain to lead the club to a league and FA Cup double.

Terry's international profile continued to grow and he was named England captain by new manager Steve McClaren in 2006. He scored the opening goal in his first match as skipper, a 4-0 victory over Greece.

Chelsea faced Manchester United in the 2008 European Champions League final in Moscow. In the penalty shootout, Terry had the chance to give Chelsea the trophy for the first time but his spot-kick hit the post and United claimed glory.

Having initially been stripped of the role in 2010, Terry was reinstated as England captain by Italian manager Fabio Capello in March 2011 following an injury to Rio Ferdinand.

Terry pleaded not guilty to charges of racial abuse in a British court on February 1. The incident in question occurred during Chelsea's defeat to Queens Park Rangers in October. The hearing will be held from July 9.

Chelsea breakthrough

England debut

The wait is over

Back-to-back titles

Leading from the front

Miss in Moscow

Captain come back

Court case

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Career of John Terry

Liverpool striker Luis Suarez was handed an eight-match ban by the English Football Association for racially abusing Manchester United's Patrice Evra in a match in October 2011. Suarez refused to shake Evra's hand during the customary pre-match ritual ahead of the teams' clash on February 12 this year. The Uruguayan has since apologized for his snub of the France defender.

Chelsea captain John Terry will face trial in July for alleged racist abuse of Queens Park Rangers defender Anton Ferdinand during a Premier League match on October 23. Terry, who was stripped of the England captaincy, denies the charges.

A fan was banned from attending all football matches for three years after directing racist abuse at Liverpool defender Glen Johnson during a match on January 3. Andrew Dale, 36, was also fined £400 ($628).

Police are investigating alleged racist abuse by a fan of third division Oldham Athletic's Tom Adeyemi during a FA Cup tie with Liverpool on January 6.

In January, a university law student was reported to police after former Liverpool player Stan Collymore, now a pundit, complained of being racially abused on the micro-blogging site Twitter.

Manchester City defender Micah Richards closed his Twitter account in February after receiving sustained abuse from other users. "I did enjoy Twitter and the banter with the fans, but I didn't like the abuse you get on it," he said. "I thought it was just for the best for myself because it can affect your confidence if people are saying things about you. I just thought it was best to come off and concentrate fully on football."

Manchester City lodged an official complaint with European football's governing body UEFA last week after Italy striker Mario Balotelli complained of racist chanting during a Europa League match against Porto.

Bugaria's football association was fined €40,000 ($53,000) in November 2011 after England complained about racist abuse of winger Ashley Young during an international match in Sofia.

Brazilian World Cup winner Roberto Carlos walked off the pitch while playing for Russian team Anzhi Makhachkala against Krylya Sovetov in June 2011, after having a banana thrown towards him in the closing stages of the match.

Samuel Eto'o, one of Africa's greatest players, tried to walk off the pitch in protest after being racially abused while playing for Barcelona against Real Zaragoza in Spain in 2006. His teammates and the referee persuaded him to stay on.

The Malaysian FA apologized to Chelsea in Julyn 2011, when Israeli midfielder Yossi Benayoun was subject to racial slurs during a pre-season game in the country.

In 2008, German midfielder Torsten Ziegner was banned five matches for racially abusing Nigerian opponent Kingsley Onuegbu during a lower league match.

Suarez hit with eight-game ban

Terry on trial

Fan banned for Johnson slur

Alleged Adeyemi abuse

Collymore abused on Twitter

Richards quits Twitter

City complain to UEFA

England star abused

Banana attack

Eto'o anger

Malaysian malaise

At all levels

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Racism incidents in football

"He started the game very well and showed exactly his qualities, experience and influence on the team, and it was a real shame he had to go off."

Chelsea's first profit of Abramovich era

The European champions had set the early-season pace, but now trail leaders Manchester United by three points after dropping into third place.

EPL titleholders Manchester City claimed second on Sunday with a 2-1 win at home to Tottenham, coming from behind before substitute Edin Dzeko snatched a late winner.

Chelsea's momentum was derailed following claims of racism laid against referee Mark Clattenburg after the controversial home defeat by United on October 28, which was followed by the arrest of a Chelsea fan who made an alleged monkey gesture at a United player in a cup game just days later.

Terry wasn't selected for Wednesday's Champions League win over Shakhtar Donetsk, where David Luiz and Gary Cahill looked shaky in defense, but the former England skipper made his mark at Stamford Bridge.

The 31-year-old scored his 50th career goal for Chelsea in the 20th minute as he lost his marker Daniel Agger at a corner and powerfully headed home at the near post from Juan Mata's delivery.

But he had to be replaced by Cahill after Suarez fell on his knee during a tackle, following a mistake by Terry that gave the ball to Steven Gerrard.

Suarez, a hate figure with opposing fans after last season's Patrice Evra racism controversy, matched Robin van Persie's EPL-leading eight goals this season when he headed home from Jamie Carragher's flick-on in the 73rd minute.

The Uruguay striker could have later ended Liverpool's run of five games without a win but was denied by keeper Petr Cech.

The draw, Liverpool's sixth in 11 league matches, left Brendan Rogers' team in 13th place -- 15 points behind bitter rivals United.