Behind Chelsea's multi-national side displaying the full range of continental skills stands home-grown captain John Terry.
Marshalling his team and protecting his goal with quiet authority and old-fashioned grit, the central defender has become talismanic at a club chasing their first English soccer title for 50 years.
"He's inspiring in the way that he's a winner, he wants to fight every game so when he is in the team he is a plus because he can influence people with his spirit," manager Jose Mourinho said after his captain scored twice against Charlton last month.
Terry, who turned 24 this week, has added goal-scoring to his repertoire this season, his trademark spiky hair rising to head home a succession of corners and crosses.
He scored in the first three rounds of the Champions League, helping to earn Chelsea a knockout phase place as group winners with two games to spare.
However, it is his defensive qualities that have earned the boy from London's East End a regular England call-up.
England assistant manager Tord Grip likens him to former England and Arsenal captain Tony Adams.
"He's probably better on the ball but as a leader he is the same type of player. He can one day be captain of England," Grip was quoted as saying last month.
STALWART DEFENCE
Terry, who took over the armband from World Cup-winning France captain Marcel Desailly only this season, follows in a noble tradition of stalwart English centre halves.
He bosses the back line without excessive force, however, unlike some of his predecessors, and stamps his authority without shouting himself hoarse.
When Mourinho chose him to captain the side Terry said he was told "Be a bit louder and communicate a bit better".
In a squad with players of 11 different mother tongues, that instruction cannot be the easiest to fulfil and he uses his arms to great effect.
Team mates, whatever their nationality, describe him as a natural leader.
"He's matured into the role of captain so quickly," Iceland striker Eidur Gudjohnsen said.
"Apart from being a fantastic defender the commitment he shows on and off the pitch is something to admire. He's got all the qualities a captain should have."
Terry's commitment stems from a genuine feeling for the club that took him on as a trainee at the age of 14. He says he wants to finish his career at Stamford Bridge "because I love playing for this club." Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich's billions could not buy that sort of loyalty.
His maturity was accelerated by a brush with the law two years ago when he was arrested after a fracas in a nightclub. Terry was eventually cleared of all charges but the incident cost him a place in England's 2002 World Cup squad.
"It helped me grow up a lot and make me a better man," he told Chelsea's club magazine. "It's taken a lot of hard work but now I'm finally the captain."
Terry was rewarded last month with a lucrative contract extension that will keep him in southwest London until 2009 and Mourinho said he was "worth every coin".
Former manager Claudio Ranieri, replaced by Mourinho last June, nurtured Terry in a side he said needed an English spine after criticism that Chelsea was relying too much on imported talent.
ENGLISH SPIRIT
The Italian said the defender embodied the English qualities of determination and spirit. "John Terry is one of the best centre backs in Europe. He commands the whole defensive line," Ranieri said.
Under Ranieri, Chelsea reached the semi-finals of the Champions League and second place in the English Premier League behind Arsenal, the side they meet on Sunday in their top-of-the-table clash.
No-one was more elated than Terry when Chelsea beat Arsenal for the first time in 17 games in the Champions League quarter-final, nor more dejected when they lost twice in the league as well as their FA Cup tie to their north London rivals.
On Sunday Chelsea, five points in front at the top, are in the driving seat against the north Londoners and Terry faces the best striker he has played against, Thierry Henry.
"He's quick, he's got great movement, he can finish and he times his runs perfectly," Terry says.
The defender will relish Sunday's challenge. He is not the fleetest of foot but he reads the game intelligently and often appears to have eyes in the back of his head.
He has also grown in confidence and his optimism is catching. "The belief running through the squad is that we can go all the way in every competition we are in," he said after Chelsea qualified for the Champions League knockout round.
Mourinho describes Terry simply as a complete skipper.
"John is my captain, he's Chelsea's captain, he's the players' captain. He's a big guy for us."
© 2024 Rediff.com -