John Terry during his farewell speech after winning the Premier League. (Source: Reuters
Former Chelsea captain John Terry and the Premier League champions will face no further action from the Football Association (FA) for the planned substitution of the 36-year old in the 26th minute at the final game at Stamford Bridge.
The case now stands closed with no action taken after the FA found no evidence of spot-fixing. Terry had arranged to leave the field at exactly the 26th minute, which was also his jersey’s number leading to thousands of pounds of bets predicting his leaving time.
The FA, however, did not find any evidence of a deliberate case of spot fixing and concluded that Terry getting substituted at a certain minute of that match was a “predictable” circumstance.
Playing for Aston Villa now, Terry had said that the 26th minute exit was his farewell idea, which was discussed with manager Antonio Conte. Sunderland manager David Moyes also revealing after his side’s 5-1 defeat that he had been informed of the idea.
The Stamford Bridge-side gave a similar send-off to former striker Didier Drogba in a fixture against Sunderland on his farewell appearance. Chelsea finished their season at the top of the table with 93 points, ahead of trailing Tottenham Hotspur by seven points. They, however, lost to Arsenal in FA Cup final.
