Did Terry spit at Tevez?

A bad 24 hours for John Terry could turn worse as fans analyse video footage of his contribution to the melee that ended in Didier Drogba’s dismissal. The evidence is inconclusive, but replays show Carlos Tevez rubbing his neck after Terry walked towards the United forward and raised his mouth in the Argentinian's direction. Watch the evidence and judge for yourself.

Comments

[Bobby]

pretty clearly he certainly spat at tevez...poor form, terry

[STE]

Let's celebrate a fantastic performance from a magnificent Man U. squad and let's forget about Terry. He had his moment in the spotlight - snivelling like a baby! England captain... you cannot be serious.

[Bob Wyper]

FACT: John Terry did NOT spit at Carlos Tevez. The Ref touched his neck with either the yellow card or his whistle which was hanging from his wrist. Everything else JT did in that one-minute spell caused the whole problem. Running at Tevez to confront him(over nothing), bringing the others into it with the resultant sending off for Drogba, and the further winding-up of Tevez to provoke a reaction by saying something up close. Tevez gets a yellow card for nothing out of all that and even has the presence of mind to KEEP walking away from the intimidation. I am no great fan of Tevez, but credit where it is due. He stayed on the park and scored a crucial penalty.

[Ian Jackson]

I wonder if the fact that he cleared his nose over Tevez allows Terry to deny the fact that he spat with conviction. his movement towards Tevez and actions are quite conclusive; they betray the sort of sportsman that should not lead England.

[Hughes]

Of course he spat. Perhaps John Terry deserves the death penalty...but then again he'd miss that one too.

[hazwan]

chelsea kicked the ball out to returned the ball. tevez did the same thing and the whole blues went crazy. this is not the first time happened as chelsea had a bad and bad record in a game before. league cup final with arsenal for example. blues are kind of newcastle types who want to be like United. so roman throw his money and terry gets his runner's up medal. england captain ? captain doesn't cries and england need a winning captain.

[Smart]

JT spat! at Tevez, watever u Chelsea funs say, he was so gutted by the incident, Chelasea as long as they continue their rubissh behaviour will not win the respect of neutrals nor will they ever be successful as a club

[P]

John Terry, the ideal England captain based on this, yet another distasteful exploit. What was it last time, urinating in a night club? Wonderful. I can really see him leading them to glory. What a role model. What a man.
Compare John Terry to Paolo Maldini, they couldn't be further apart:
http://gentrystyle.com/2008/05/18/ciao-bello-saying-farewell-to-paolo-maldini/

[kkkkkk]

He spat or sneezed at Teves. it is disgusting. Teves wouldn't have know or noticed exactly what touched him because it was raining.

[JV]

Definetly Drogba that spat. Watch it carefully and you will see him getting prepared to spit while he is in view, and does so as soon as he is behind the referee.

[TS]

For crying out loud, you can quite clearly see its the referees whistle which hits him in the neck, unless JT's spit was black and shaped like a whistle ? JT goes over, has a word, the ref runs over, holds out the card and his whistle comes up and hits Tevez in the neck. Watch it again closely.

[Sam]

I don't think Terry spat at Tevez, simply called him some names serious enough for him to think he had to cover his mouth to mask it. Just your bog standard xenophobic slurs probably. But we expect that from the great English warrior JT don't we? Whats a few racist/xenophobic comments when he's good at heading the ball.

[gary]

very clear he spat at him mate. i have watched the clip 10 times just to be sure. he pretended as if he was cleaning his mouth with his shirt. he did that twice and then spat at him.
no wonder he missed his penalty. after seeing this you don't have any pity for him at all. it
is a disgrace to football. there is nothing inconclusive about the video. it is pretty clear.

[Shaun David]

Something nasty and threatening was being said or done by JT in a snide manner, which just highlights the true man behind this so called England hero. We all feel it when you look at the clip! Only a blind blue would deny it.

[kavah]

has anyone considered the possibility of a 2nd spitter ?

i'm waiting for the "Zapruder" footage to be uploaded before passing judgement.

[SteveyG]

Fitting that Chelsea are now being linked with the godfather of flob himself, Frank Rijkaard

[DAN]

I have to say I do not like Chelsea in the slightest. A club with no ambition, class or dignity trying to buy their way to the top and who don't give their youngsters half a chance. They were so much better without Abramovich there. But you have to say the ref's whistle hit the back of Tevez's neck and I'm sick of peoples' emotions getting the better of them. Yes, Terry's actions were very strange but stop looking for a excuse that isnt worthy. Face the truth. He is overpaid, overrated and missed his penalty. Isn't that demoralising enough? Hats off to Tevez though. True proffessional. Brilliant footballer. As for Man Utd diving and cheating, maybe you should look at Chelsea, Drogba and Joe Cole for that matter. Drogba should be in the West End diving around like he does. A melodramatic diva comes to mind. A complete waste of a talent.

[ryan]

Please people watch very closely. And you will see Drogba is the one who spat at Tevez.

[Peter Lowe]

Lets be honest, had it been a foreign player spitting on a fellow professional ALL the media would be highlighting it and it would be front page news...it's J.T., the press love J.T. so it's hardly been picked up...What a disgusting thing to do spitting on another person !

[Sé]

Terry is a sad excuse for a man. It's he not Grant should be run out of Chelsea.

[Si]

No one can say for sure Terry spat at Tevez, the video is totally inconclusive.
Man U fans playing the victims?! Give me a break.
Everyone plays the victim in this sport so I've got no sympathy for any of them.
Honesty is not a concept that figures highly in football at this level. They're all as bad as each other.

[Steve W]

Drogba was the spitter, you can see him sniff it back, load up and fire as the ref holds up the card - the ref probably sees this unless he blinks at the critical moment. Also Ballack tries to make up for his lack of skill by intimidating the opposition throughout the game. Oh for a Roy Keane to point out the error of his ways!

[Dirlo]

Terry, terry, terry. I dont care he spit on tevez or not, as MU fans i still hate him. And i am enjoying his crying because miss penalty. Hope he will miss penalty again in any games.

[Tony.Glasgow]

YES he did this not football this is discrimination..! That's why he lose penalty If anyone says Terry did nothing then they're either blind or lying. He CLEARLY aims a load of snot from his nostril which hits Tevez's neck. I saw it happen on tv just after he wipes his mouth with his shirt.

[AK]

There is no doubt what John Terry has done here. It is the typical behaviour of that belongs to the growing yob culture amongst the youth today. How can he even be considered to be anywhere near the England shirt and represent the nation let alone be captain.
Justice has been served here. If he was an intelligent and educated person he should reflect on evening's events and his actions. Alas he is not. I am so glad he missed his penalty. Let his puny mind be forever tortured. He deserves it and the media should be responsible and out him as the thug he is, and stop this pathetic portrayal of him as a poor victim.

[ELC]

There is quite clearly a spray emanating from either Terry's mouth or nostrils. QED.

[Peter Thompson]

I can't imagine a bigger thug than Roy Keane and the United of his days was appalling in its behaviour. Perhaps the guilt of this makes people unable to see all faults.

As for thugs Manchester United have a few masters at the sly and not so sly foul, the quick elbow and the awfully belicose scotsman who is their manager makes them a rum bunch at times.

with the pronouncemnts of Teves since the SB incident I am beginning to wonder if we see him in a different light from next season - more of a back street brawler, a snappy scrapper. He needs a good tackle from Ron Harris.

[Declan]

I think there was an element of poetic justice in the way that Chelsea unraveled last Wednesday night. Chelsea's systematic habit of surrounding referees in an effort to intimidate them backfired spectacularly. Had John Terry not reacted so hypocritically to Tevez's actions Drogba would never have been sent off and would therefore have taken one of the orignal 5 pens, thereby sparring the world the ordeal of having to watch him cry. Its just a shame it was United, a team equally adept at intimidating referees who were the beneficiaries of this rare example of poetic justice. As regards the "spitting" its inconclusive

[Jug]

I am a Chelsea fan who's left London and am living and working in Manchester. Not one of the Man U fans that I know has even raised this as an incident, mainly because a whistle in the back of the head isn't classed as yobbish behaviour.

They have also said that even though they don't like Terry that much (bit of the Shearer syndrome there) that they totally respected the way he played that night.

Admittedly he's made mistakes in the past, but who hasn't...

[Elliot Hiller]

Sometimes we have to wait a while for the wheels of destiny to turn, sometimes we reap what we sow very quickly. John Terry should not have helped instigate the melee about Tevez' action (which was the same as Chelsea had previously done and perfectly within the rules of the game and fair-play), but have calmed his teammates and kept them out of it, after all he is the captain and should be setting a good example. Instead Drogba got sent off, Terry took his place as one of the first five penalty takers, and missed. How clean does a pane of glass have to be before you can see through it? One can only hope that Terry learns from this searing experience and develops as much as a human being and captain as he possibly can, otherwise this kind of thing will carry on happening to him over and over again until he learns!

[Phil J N]

Very Interesting.

I didnt notice this incident whilst watching the game, but looking at the replay on Youtube, there is definitely something Unpleasant going on in JT`s mind and behaviour.
He looks very "considered" in his mannerisms, and definitely has some kind of malicious intent on his mind, so I (and many others it seems) can only assume by Tevez` reaction that something emanating from the three plug holes in JT`s face flew out and hit him.
As has been stated by a number of folk, JT`s behaviour seems to be quite thuggish at the best of times, and you only hav eto look back at the semi final against Liverpool , at the incident that was far more blatantly obvious in replay (but received ZERO press coverage???) where Terry jumped over a prone Torres and deliberately trailed his right foot to kick Torres in the chest.
The commentators saw it, the pundits saw it, it was shown once or twice accompanied by disbelief and disgust by all who viewed it, then suddenly, it was never mentioned again.
Strangely enough, I happen to think that kicking an opponent in a game involving feet arms legs and head, isnt as bad as "gobbing" on someone.
Spitting is more than physical, its a disgusting attempt to demean another human being, and the act of a low life scumbag with despicable human attributes.
England Captain?
Ugh! What a filthy excuse for a human being.

[Rob]

I'm a United fan and I hate John Terry with a passion but he didn't spit at Tevez. If someone spat on the back of your neck you'd turn round immediately, Tevez' reaction is too slow and more in time with when the ref raises the yellow card suggesting he was hit the whistle hanging from his wrist.
That said, i'm still glad it was Terry who missed that penalty!

[xyko]

after watching the high quality recording i made of it on my computer, many many times.. i decided that terry did not spit.. he was definitely doing something dodgy though.. perhaps just cussing tevez but why would he need to hide his mouth like that then? i could have blown snot from his nose but i couldn't see that properly. i could confirm that it is definitely the ref's whistle that blows out of the ref's mouth and bounces off of tevez's neck before hangs off the string again.. thats what made tevez flick his head and touch his neck.. as for terry... regardless of whether he spat or cussed.. very undeserving to be a captain

[IK]

watch it again and you will see that Tevez's hand is already on the way up before the referee's whistle comes close. Something must have got to him before... Maybe JT was trying to obscure his mouth from lip readers (like in the Zidane incident...)

[sonny]

no, course he didn't. Whatever people think of Terry he doesn't do that.

[alan]

To Jim, you must be very blind to say that there wasn't a whistle. The referee was holding the whistle in the same hand as the yellow card. Watch the video again.

[Mike D]

Within Terry there is a Joey Barton and a Lee Bowyer waiting to get out.

The man needs anger management quickly or his career will be ruined. The fact that he still knocks about with Jody Morris speaks volumes.

[Esther]

It's impossible to see clearly from this clip if John Terry did or didn't spit at Carlos Tevez. But what on earth WAS he doing?

[Norbert]

Chelsea are a group of ill behaved thugs who think they can force things to go their way, look ta Drogba, unnecessary red card, they need a coach like Sir Alex to deal with such big headed snobs.Wish they could loe every game the whole season!

[Sunny Jim]

Has any one considered the possibility that it might have been Drogba doing the spitting?

Looking at the video Dorgbas face is hidden from the camera as Tevez walks past him.

[Suntzu]

Tevez had already begun to look in the direction of Terry before the Ref's whistle came into play. Its also hard to imagine the ref's whistle hitting tevez's neck - it would hit his shoulder first.
Terry's body language when approaching so close to Tevez is highly suspicious. I don't see evidence of spit/snot on the video but the quality of footage is not great.
For me the real question is not whether he actually spat but why he chose to get involved with tevez at all. After many years of playing amateur football I know that its just not necessary and at the very least is un-professional - at worst he could have been sent off as well as Drogba. Clubs need to take the lead and disciplin players whose behaviour falls short of that which we would normally expect from small children. If they refuse the FA (in this case UEFA) should intervene. I am not a rugby fan but I have to admit that footballers and the various governing bodies could learn much from how this sport is played and administered.

[JVS]

Tevez is showing his class by refusing to comment or be drawn into the debate: Terry showed his class on the pitch.

[david b]

He spat, pretended he was wiping his mouth as he moved towards him, quickly spat and put his mouth back on his sleeve to carry on with the pretense. Tevez feels it straight away but carries on as I think he was concerned about getting caught up in the melee that John Terry started by demonstrating with Tevez who was within his rights to kick the ball back out as Chelsea had done the same thing. He was still giving the ball back but just not where the Chelsea players wanted it.

[steveo]

Terry didn't spit at him but was slyly pretending so that tevez would react and get another yellow card therefore sent off.

[Neil]

yes he spat.
If he was having a go at him the sheer nature of the event, the time etc and the way John Terry is would have seen him shouting at Tevez. Instead he says something, slyly makes out he is wiping his nose/mouth and spits. The reaction of Tevez shows what he did and these images should be all over the press - not poor John Terry headlines. What if it had been the other way round?
Send the video to the England manager and see what he thinks. At least this time Terry had the grace to accept his losers medal with an ounce of dignity, look at him against Spurs - this man is a spoilt brat, not a hero, not brave and certainly not a worthy captain!

[Jimmy Cuz]

If you look closely the whistle could only hit the back of Tevez's head not his neck. Some people say, if Terry spat Tevez would have gone crazy. I do not think so. Tevez understands the importance of the game, and unlike Terry and Drogba does not feel the need to prove his masculinity by finger wagging and slapping people.

[Holly]

This is why I would rather watch Rugby, a REAL MAN'S SPORT, boys aren't allowed. They are acting like a bunch of spoiled little boys that obviously haven't been taught any manners.

[JIM]

Don't be silly SCOTT, if it's "the referee's whistle that either touches Tevez shoulder or spit comes out of the whistle" and "Not John Terry", where is the whistle in the vid? One had held the yellow card (doesn't touch Tevez, and saliva certainly cannot come out from there) and the other hand is empty. The footage, however, does show Terry's mouth moving awfully close to Tevez's neck.

[Sean]

Give refs respect! Stop fightin! Teams like everton, villa etc. far more respectful and deserve more coverage! At some times last night these flash clowns stink of selling out. (Rio's "you've been murked anyone?" can just never sit with me) As well as that, Owen Hargreaves dive, clutchin his face...shamefull! just disappionted to be honest...lack of class at times from both teams. Still, (grudgingly) some amazing players on display! Drogba could grace any team in the world!

[Mike M]

I'm a United fan. No, Tevez didn't react to a spit, there was a pause of a couple of seconds between the alleged spit and Tevez's reaction. What Tevez reacted to was being flicked on the neck by the ref's whistle, or the string to which it is attached. He reacts to that immediately. There was no spit.

[Red Ron]

He's a complete thug!! Terry gets away with it everytime. It's true, if it was a United player this would be frontpage headlines! Hope he's still crying... what goes round comes round!

[OWEN]

If anyone says Terry did nothing then they're either blind or lying. He CLEARLY aims a load of snot from his nostril which hits Tevez's neck. I saw it happen on tv at the time and you can see it in slow motion on the Youtube video just after he wipes his mouth with his shirt.

Classy Terry - you're a disgrace

[Eugene]

I noticed this when it happened but JT done it in a way that made it very difficult for anybody standing behind him (everyone on the pitch) to see it. I hope UEFA throw the book at him, its the lowest of the low..

[Ray]

Terry's body language was highly questionable - i think it's fair to suggest he did spit something at him - but thats what you get with Chelsea - a small time club with money who don't know how to conduct themselves in the big time

[Fergus]

Well Terry was over saying"hi". He was acting the part of thug as usual and poor sport as usual. Glad to see them lose,I hope the exodus of players from Chelsea over the summer is a huge one.

[Guy]

Not so much a spit as a 'snotting' (if that's a word). What a palava with the sleeve to distract attention!!! He pulls away with a forceful gust from the nasal passages to confirm his bovver boy credentials. All we have heard for 24 hrs is about his bravery. That, my friends, is cowardice of the highest order...and a 5 match ban.

[DC]

What a disgusting young man Terry is and to think I actually felt sorry for this lad.

[billy walker]

terry spat at tevez and god spat at him

[i_dont_care_and_i_didnt_do_it]

Only a moron like Mclaren could have made JT England captain over Gerrard, Owen, Ferdinand, they wouldn't have been blubbing like a baby last night, though it was entertaining!

[Nathan]

I dont really post on things like this as i just enough watching people make something its not, but i for one will not stand by and not have a say with this witch hunt, actually watch the video, you will clearly see as the ref lifts his arm up his whistle (which is around his wraist) hits the back of tevez's neck hence why he turns around

[AE]

I dislike both clubs. Don't like Terry either. But there's nothing there. At all. Try spitting. See how you mouth & head move. Terry did nothing. I dislike even more newspapers trying to create the news. And this form the Times, dear me, they should be ashamed. Tabloid-tastic.

[Jarrad Wilkes]

Terry and Chelsea are a disgrace but it's hard to have sympathy for Man U with their constant diving/haranguing and highly dubious decisions that always seem to go their way.

Van Der Sar's actions during the shoot-out were an absolute disgrace.

It was crystal clear he spat, and I was appauled. Terry cannot be England captain behaving in such a way. Then again goldfish brain Ferdinand isn't exactly a perfect choice either. Tevezs reaction said it all and footage will show Terry inclines his head just as he was wiping his mouth, what yobs footballers can be.

[Danny]

The intend is clearly there! If you get an intention of head butting your opponent, it is irrelevant that was contact or not! Same apply for this case.
If we are talking about role model, then England should never have such captain! Deserves an investigation by UEFA.

[Darren]

When watching the game, I thought terry had tried to elbow Tevez, disguising it as wiping his mouth. Regardless of whether or not he spat/elbowed/insulted Tevez, he was attempting to cover up a malicious action. I hope the FA or UEFA take a look.

[markgore]

As long as Terry is the captain of Chelsea FC they will continue to embarass themselves through brutish behaviour, disrespect for the referees, opponents and the game. I guess the football gods were watching the game last night ...

[RR]

from watching the clip its quite obvious he did nt spit at him, he was saying something to him, probably along the lines or 'you're a *****'

there is no reason to think he spat this is a simple tackless attempt to spark controvesy

[Tommy]

No no, he's England's heroic fearless lion (tm) John Terry

[naz]

not surprising!
thats John Terry all over
sore loser!

come on Ferdinand

[Walker]

Terry did not spit on Tevez, he snotted him. Walker, Austin, Texas

[Scott]

It's the referee's whistle that either touches Tevez shoulder or spit comes out of the whistle. Not John Terry. This is a witch hunt by the Man U fans & media. Get your facts right. Tevez would go nuts if it was Terry.

[Liam]

That's what I thought watching the match live. I haven't seen the replays but I knew he was doing something, cause that "i am whiping my mouth" move was to suspicious...lol

[paddy]

What a disgrace chelsea are as a whole.I agree that rooney hargreaves etc. gave the ref a bit of a hard time last night questioning a few decisions but nowhere near the amount chelsea were dishing.We have seen it all season, they surround, harrass and try to influence refs and it came back to bite them last night. I did initially feel for terry, no one likes to see a grown man cry but it did look like he aimed something nasty at tevez.what goes around comes around.Surely cant be england captain??

[x-------x]

Why isn't this at the top of the Sports page?

If it was Rio or Ronaldo doing this kind of thing, it would be treated as a scandal.

My fear is this will pass by, and Terry will get off scott free!

[x-------x]

of course it was intentional.
Drogba had just been sent off, so of course Terry has got something to say. Or should i say spray.

That is disgusting.

[alan]

here's the video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B5uGA9Ef55I

If you look closely, it is the referee's whistle which makes contact with his face that actually caused Tevez's reaction

[GW]

Of course he knew what he was doing, yet again the biggest hypocrite in the game has shamed himself.
Who cares that he missed the penalty, this man deserves everything he gets!

[bumble]

anyone care?

[AJ]

He spat at Tevez. Anyone suprised?
Delighted he missed the penalty and cried.
Pathetic individual.