John Terry's friends certainly seem to think he is. At least that what was the report in the Guardian said on Friday morning. Bridge had just announced that he was pulling out of the England squad because he thought his presence would be a distraction. "Sources close to Terry" suggested that Bridge was a bottler and always had been.
I must say I had pondered this suggestion myself with the information I had read on the internet, by internet I mean some soccer websites I frequent and not women's magazines. I prefer to call it information rather than facts. It is those rumours and innuendos which inform my opinions. The facts are anyone's guess.
The information I have is that Wayne Bridge and his ex-girlfriend (let's call her the "underwear model") broke up about this time last year. This coincided with his big move to Man City but that doesn't seem to be connected. Then in September, John Terry stepped in to Bridge's shoes so to speak and had an affair with Bridge's ex. The trouble started when they were photographed leaving a house near Terry's other house. You know you're rich when you have one house for your family and another for your mistresses. No matter what way you look at it, it's hard to feel sorry for these guys because you only have these problems if you're filthy rich and go around shagging supermodels.
John Terry having affairs is not big news in itself. He has been the subject of quite a few kiss and tell stories in the tabloids. A bit of like Tiger Woods. Very similar to Tiger really, except Tiger was better at covering it up, until he got caught and his wife chased him into a tree with a golf club. It's a lucky for John that Toni Terry is more forgiving and prefers to take out her anger on the shopping malls in Dubai.
Let's try to stick to the information. After the papers told Terry that they had these photos, he applied for an injunction to prevent their publication. I'd call the the photos incriminating but that would be an exaggeration. Sleeping with underwear models is very much a legal activity. Although in my case it could be called 'so unlikely it's criminal'.
Terry argued that the photos were an invasion of his human right to privacy and no one had a right to know his business. On appeal the court held that the right to free speech outweighed his right to privacy and the story could be published.
I don't know if the judgment itself was also a one liner but that was how it was reported. The relationship between Bridge and Terry has been given broadly defined in the media from just plain old former teammates to best friends and now it would appear former best friends.
In defence of the underwear model whose name has escaped me and you will forgive me I'm sure if I don't google her, she was broken up with the Bridgey by the time she hooked up with the centre back. I stand to be corrected here but surely on breaking up with a chick, you acquiesce all rights to what she gets up to next.
Supposing on the other hand that Terry and Bridge were good friends and Terry abused that friendship by shagging the man's ex. That would be bad form. Would JT do that? Of course he would. Is it wrong? Yes.
But what if Bridge had moved on himself at that stage? Would that have changed things? Surely. Yet it keeps coming back to whether Terry betrayed Bridge's trust and that is what it is starting to look like more and more.
Still and all with Ashley Cole's injury Bridge looked odds-on to be the England full-back at the World Cup. Being English, he must think the World Cup is in the bag already which would mark the pinnacle of his career, well either that or his contract with Manchester City which made him one of the world's best paid players. Not bad for a guy who has underachieved on (and perhaps off) the pitch ever since he left his comfort zone at Southampton.
To think, it could all have been so different if Terry had signed for Man City during the summer. The whole controversy is really only scandalous because Terry himself is married and the English are obsessed with such things. If Terry was single and the same thing had happened, wouldn't the underwear model have been fair game and there is no way in hell Terry would have been stripped of the captaincy. Who knows, it might even have been true love!
As for Bridge, while I totally respect him for not shaking Terry's hand, he should really just get on with it and play for England if called upon. That's what professional footballers do.
Now if I knew the facts, I would probably have a different take but I don't and from what I know, it looks like Bridge is hiding and taking the easy way out as he so often does for Man City.
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