Former Chelsea captain John Terry has come under fire from football fans after claiming that his former manager Jose Mourinho once ordered him to get booked in three consecutive Premier League matches to trigger a deliberate suspension.
Speaking on FC Bullard The Show, the 45-year-old former defender recalled how he picked up intentional yellow cards so he would miss an FA Cup tie against Walsall and be available for a crucial fixture against Manchester United.
Terry describes deliberate booking scheme
Terry played under Mourinho during two separate spells at Stamford Bridge, winning several major honours. Recalling the alleged incident on the podcast, Terry claimed Mourinho approached him when he was sitting on two yellow cards ahead of an upcoming cup match.
"We played, I think it was like the second round of the FA Cup, Walsall away or something," Terry said. "Three Premier League games before, I’m on two bookings. He comes to me and he was like, 'You have to miss that one because we play Man United at home after Walsall. I want you to miss the FA Cup game, so you have to get booked in the next three league games'."
According to Terry, getting booked would earn him a one-match suspension for the trip to Walsall, which he saw as an opportunity to rest while Mourinho rotated the squad. "So I get booked the first game, get booked in the second game," Terry said. "I’m on four bookings. I’m one booking away from having a one-game suspension, which would be Walsall away. It would be a rest for me and he could play the fringe players."
Terry said the plan culminated during a home match in the 89th minute with Chelsea leading. He said Mourinho urged him from the touchline: "f***ing get booked, get booked."
To ensure he received the booking, Terry explained how he delayed taking a throw-in in the closing stages of the game. "There’s a throw-in in the left corner and I said to one of the boys, 'Leave it'," Terry said. "He leaves it, and I’m standing there with the ball like this. I’m not throwing it because I know the ref’s going 'come on'."
Terry recounted telling the referee: "There’s no option. I got no options, ref, mate." After holding onto the ball for roughly two minutes, the official approached and issued a yellow card. Terry added that Mourinho rewarded him after the match: "He sends me to Dubai for four days after. Little bits like that. It was just so good."
Match records contradict podcast claims
However, Terry's account was quickly challenged by supporters and online researchers who reviewed official football records to verify his timeline. Their checks revealed that the former Chelsea captain never picked up yellow cards in three consecutive Premier League games during either of Mourinho's managerial tenures.
In addition, Chelsea never faced Walsall in the FA Cup while Terry was at the club. The West Midlands team, nicknamed the Saddlers, did play Chelsea in a League Cup tie in 2015, but Terry started that match and received a yellow card in the 52nd minute instead of serving a suspension.
One supporter detailed how Terry appeared to be conflating several distinct moments from his playing career: "He’s mashing up 3 events… the things happened, just not as he remembers. Scunthorpe 2005: Rested before the Man Utd game. Huddersfield 2006: Dubai break with Super Frank. Wolves 2011: Deliberately got a 90th minute 5th yellow to miss a cup tie. This was under Villas-Boas."
Supporters defend memory mix-up
Despite the inaccuracies, some fans jumped to Terry's defence, pointing out that memory lapses are understandable for a player with a long career at the highest level. "Maybe when you’re playing an insane amount of matches and have highs and lows throughout 30+ years in football, you simply get yellow cards and games mixed up?" one supporter wrote. "Do we sometimes forget simple stuff too?"
Reports suggest Terry's recollection of a mid-season trip to Dubai may have stemmed from a break Mourinho granted him in December 2014. At the time, the Portuguese manager publicly confirmed that he gave Terry, Eden Hazard and Willian several days off ahead of a Champions League match against Sporting Lisbon to manage their workload during a busy fixture list.
