'Footage don't lie'... Ferdinand breaks silence over race row with Terry as Chelsea skipper returns to training

Anton Ferdinand has broken his silence after John Terry was found guilty of using racist language towards him, declaring: 'Footage don't lie.'
Ferdinand took to Twitter to respond to abuse he claimed to have received on the social media site since Terry was handed a four-match ban and a £220,000 fine by an independent Football Association panel over the pair's altercation in a match at Loftus Road almost a year ago.

Back in the routine: John Terry with Ashley Cole in Friday's training session at Cobham

Put through his paces: Terry trained ahead of his expected appearance at Arsenal on Saturday

 

The QPR defender tweeted: 'On a serious note people need 2 read the facts before they send stupid tweets 2 me with liar and grass in it footage don't lie.'
Chelsea refused to answer questions on the Terry verdict at their Friday press conference to preview tomorrow's Barclays Premier League game at Arsenal.
Manager Roberto Di Matteo confirmed the defender was fit and available but refused to say whether he would definitely start. But he had no fears about Terry's mental state following his four-day long FA hearing.
'He's a professional player,' Di Matteo said, confirming he had spoken to the 31-year-old. 'He's a senior player as well. He's got all the experience in the world.'
Di Matteo did admit he felt the Terry case had dragged on for too long.
'It's taken a long time and the only thing we can do is just wait and see what happens,' he said. 'Everybody would've like it to be a bit quicker.'
Meanwhile, players' chief Gordon Taylor has claimed that the length of time taken for the FA to deal with the case has caused divisions which may never be healed.

Taylor, chief executive of the Professional Footballers' Association, said the delay had caused the issue to 'fester' within football and he has called for the game to move on and to continue to eradicate racism.
Taylor said: 'Almost 12 months on and the John Terry case was still not heard by the FA until the day after Luis Suarez shook hands with Patrice Evra at Anfield.

Fun and games: Terry enjoyed himself as he returned to the day job at Cobham

Back: John Terry drives into Chelsea's training ground on Friday morning

'Such a delay has allowed the matter to fester and cause divisions in the football family which will take a long time to heal - if they ever do.
'We have to move on now and move on together and continue our focus to eradicate racism from the game and society.
'There should be new educational processes for all players - young and old, and for managers and directors.
'There should be equitable recruitment processes, and a fast-track disciplinary process that does not allow for delays or holding off at the request of the Crown Prosecution Service.'

Long time coming: The Terry verdict came 11 months after the incident involving Anton Ferdinand

The FA had delayed their own disciplinary hearing until after the magistrates court case - where Terry was acquitted - at the request of the CPS.
Premier League chief executive Richard Scudamore also felt the length of time taken to reach a verdict in the FA case had made the situation worse.
Scudamore told the Daily Telegraph: 'The fact is, the criminal justice system has had a look at it and decided and the football system, which is a different test and I respect the fact the FA has to look at it, has also decided.
'It is very difficult, but my concern is the length of time that this takes because we have been sitting here, unable to move on and unable to get clarity. We have to work out a way of doing these things earlier.
'If the argument is that these (charges) are completely separate, irrespective of what the courts decide, if football's test is different, why can't we decide (the outcome) if it is a completely different test?
'I don't quite know why one has to wait for the other if the tests are completely different. It would have been much better for everybody, whether the outcome is positive or negative, if it was done quickly.'

Posted in: