John Terry has categorically denied racially abusing Anton Ferdinand. .....However he hasn't yet ruled out shagging his missus!
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QPR's Anton Ferdinand tells of 'crazy’ days in furore with Chelsea's John Terry
Anton Ferdinand last night spoke for the first time about the gathering storm surrounding John Terry’s alleged racial slur against the Queens Park Rangers defender, describing it as a “crazy” week
Officials from the Football Association’s governance and regulation department are expected to return to QPR's Harrington training ground this afternoon, having visited on Tuesday, to interview Ferdinand, who is adamant that his main priority is Sunday’s Premier League game against Tottenham.
“The last few days have been crazy,” Ferdinand, 26, told Telegraph Sport.
“But I’m looking forward to Sunday’s game and fully focused on football.
"Anyone who knows me will know that whatever’s going on, football’s always going to be my number one priority.
"I can’t wait for Sunday’s game: a derby, a very big game.”
Ferdinand paid tribute to the support he has received from others in the game, most notably his cousin Les Ferdinand and Blackburn striker Jason Roberts.
“I’d like to thank players like Jason Roberts for the support they have given me,” he said.
“Not just professionals at other clubs but my team-mates at QPR.
"They’ve been fantastic for me. Having team-mates around you like I have is nice to feel, and nice to see.”
Had his manager Neil Warnock spoken to him about the incident? “I don’t want to talk about that,” Ferdinand responded.
“I’m not worried about that. I’m worried about the game on Sunday.”
On top of the FA’s investigation, the police are also assessing the incident during the game between QPR and Chelsea on Sunday, in which Terry is alleged to have directed a racist comment at Ferdinand.
Terry, the Chelsea and England captain, has consistently denied making any racist remark and says that he welcomes the chance to clear his name.
FA officials, having visited the QPR training ground already, intend to take further statements today.
It is not clear when they will speak to Terry, who will lead Chelsea against Arsenal in tomorrow’s lunchtime kick-off at Stamford Bridge.
Ferdinand accepts that he did not directly hear what Terry said to him during Sunday’s match, but was sufficiently concerned by subsequent footage of the incident for QPR to request an investigation.
The flashpoint occurred in the 85th minute of the match, when it is alleged that Terry mouthed the words 'you ******* black ****’ towards Ferdinand.
Terry issued a statement on Sunday saying that he thought Ferdinand had accused him of making a racist slur and “responded aggressively, saying that I never used that term”.
Chelsea have suggested that Terry only used the offending words as part of a longer sentence, denying any racism.
There had been a hope at Chelsea that Ferdinand would corroborate Terry’s statement, particularly as they spoke for 10 minutes after the match.
With the full backing of QPR, Ferdinand has, instead, encouraged the FA to investigate the incident.
With Ferdinand not having heard what Terry said, the FA’s investigation is expected to hinge significantly on the available video evidence.
The footage that was posted on the internet is partially obscured by Ashley Cole walking past Terry. The FA, however, is expected to request other television angles in an attempt to make proper sense of the incident.
There is no time frame for the FA investigation, but the resulting fallout has seen Ferdinand, the younger brother of England defender Rio, thrown into the spotlight.
When pressed, Ferdinand refused to elaborate on the events of Sunday while the matter is still being investigated but acknowledged that, over the last few days, he has received an unprecedented number of phone calls, text messages and tweets.
He stressed his determination to block out the distraction of the Terry affair. “It’s part of the job,” he said.
“You’ve got to play in front of 40,000 or 50,000 people every week and you’ve got to block them out, so if you can’t block this out, there’s no point in playing the game. You’re going to struggle.”
What exactly was Ferdinand’s recollection of Sunday’s events?
“I don’t want to talk about that,” was his terse reply. What he actually wanted to talk about was the new computer game Battlefield 3, which he was promoting in London.
To be fair to Ferdinand, his silence was most likely the product of outside counsel rather than truculence on his own part. And there was an acknowledgement of the strain these turbulent last few days have had.
Ferdinand insisted that he would emerge from the episode a stronger person.
“Has it been the craziest week of my life? There’s been other situations, but it’s certainly up there. But these types of situations are what make you.”
Ferdinand appeared in good spirits yet there is little chance of the row dissipating in the immediate future, with Chelsea manager Andre Villas Boas dedicating his side’s Carling Cup win against Everton on Wednesday to Terry.
One of the by-products of the controversy is that it has taken the gloss off QPR’s surprise 1-0 victory at Loftus Road, and Ferdinand was keen to pay tribute to his team’s spirit and resolve in holding out against Chelsea, who were reduced to nine men after the red cards shown to Jose Bosingwa and Didier Drogba.
“When you play against ten men or nine men, sometimes it’s harder,” he said.
“There was more urgency from them. They had to put the pressure on us because we were winning, but we knew we didn’t have to score again.
“We knew we could sit back and try to pick them off. That didn’t happen, and at times we could have kept the ball better, but we got three points, and that’s all that mattered.”Comment
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If Terry is found guilty, I suppose Rio will captain England at next summer's Euros.
Just saying....That rug really tied the room together.Comment
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I doubt it, he'll be injured.Originally posted by Liverpel View Post
The only gracious way to accept an insult is to ignore it; if you can't ignore it, top it; if you can't top it, laugh at it; if you can't laugh at it, it's probably deserved.Comment
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mate of mine is a big chelsea fan, he thinks it's all a conspiracy to get Rio the armband back!Comment
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HAHA i was thinking that too! this must be the reason for the wait! orr anton is currently contemplating whether to accept the pay off from terry!!jc - after the live score and the best Soccer Blog onlineComment
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Dave Whelan say Anton and all other black players should just forget about it. :shocked:
reddit this Agencies
guardian.co.uk, Saturday 29 October 2011 21.15 EDT Article history
The Wigan chairman Dave Whelan has said players are "out of order" to complain about being referred to by their race.
Whelan, responding to allegations against John Terry, which the England captain denies, told LBC the issue of racism in football was overblown, and that players "should just get on with it".
He said: "If a white man insults a black man that's big, big news. If a black man insults a white man that's nothing, and it's expected.
"I think we should forget colour and … you know, it doesn't bother anybody. Sometimes a footballer, when they're playing at such a level, with the stress there is … if they call somebody white, if they call somebody black, you've just got to get on with it.
"You know, I think the players who come and complain, sometimes they are a little bit out of order.
"The game is a game, the game is a football game, whether you're white, black, pink, red, it doesn't matter. We're all equal and we all play football and we should get on with it."
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Shut the **** up you old *******.Comment
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what an idiot .....clearly he's running as a candidate for the BNP .....like being back in the 70'sComment
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The only gracious way to accept an insult is to ignore it; if you can't ignore it, top it; if you can't top it, laugh at it; if you can't laugh at it, it's probably deserved.Comment
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deleted.Comment
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Known as what?Last edited by Kenneth; 30-10-11, 04:02 PM.Trey Nyoni: countdown to stardom-2 years1year0.5 yearsComment
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Definitely something in this.
Anton Ferdinand gives race-row statement to FA
Queens Park Rangers defender Anton Ferdinand has given a statement to the Football Association (FA) relating to claims of racial abuse by John Terry.
Ferdinand said he has "very strong" feelings on the matter, but will not elaborate until a "thorough" FA inquiry has been concluded.
He said he will not make any further comment in the "interests of fairness".
England captain Terry has denied the allegations, which relate to Chelsea's 1-0 loss at Loftus Road on 23 October.
In a statement released on Monday afternoon, Ferdinand said: "I have very strong feelings on the matter, but in the interests of fairness and not wishing to prejudice what I am sure will be a very thorough inquiry by the FA, this will be my last comment on the subject until the inquiry is concluded."
He also thanked everyone at QPR, including manager Neil Warnock, supporters and his team-mates, for their "unwavering" support.
The FA announced the investigation after it was claimed Chelsea captain Terry shouted racial abuse during the west London derby.
Some viewers claimed video replays from the match between the sides showed Terry using racist language, while the FA said it received a complaint.
Chelsea manager Andre Villas-Boas earlier stated that a post-match conversation between Terry and Ferdinand had marked "the end of the story".
But the Metropolitan Police is assessing evidence from the incident after receiving a complaint.
In a statement following the Blues' loss, Terry described the incident as a "misunderstanding" and claimed that his accusers "have leapt to the wrong conclusions about the context of what I was seen to be saying".
He added: "I would never say such a thing - and I'm saddened that people would think so."
Speaking before his team's defeat at Tottenham on Sunday, QPR chairman Tony Fernandes stressed his club's condemnation of all forms of racism but added it was time to concentrate on the future.
"As a club, we will provide our players with our unequivocal support when alleged incidents like this occur," he said.
"However, we are keen to draw a line under this alleged incident and focus on our forthcoming fixtures."
Terry was stripped of the England captaincy in February 2010 after allegations that he had had an affair with the ex-girlfriend of Wayne Bridge, an international team-mate.
He was reinstated by coach Fabio Capello in March after the Italian deemed a year without the armband to have been sufficient "punishment".Hello mert.Comment
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