Terry’s behaviour is arguably more reprehensible in that he is married (Eriksson was not), and has offended a fellow player, but we are talking about footballers here, not Sunday school teachers or politicians espousing family values. Footballers get up to that sort of thing all the time, and plenty worse. If an ill-advised affair is to cost the England captain his job, what should happen to players involved in assaults, affrays, gang bangs, roasting scandals or using the services of prostitutes? Can we not be a little bit grown up about this and accept that footballers are paid to play football – something Terry is still able to do perfectly well – and what they get up to with their copious free time and spare cash is no one else’s business as long as it does not infringe the law? The next king of this country, after all, will hardly be a shining example of marital fidelity or amorous discretion, but perhaps Bill Shankly was on the right lines all along in saying football is so much more important than anything else.
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