JOHN TERRY will be lucky to stay on the park when he makes his return to Chelsea’s starting line-up at Wolves on Saturday – according to Molineux legend Steve Bull.
Bull believes Terry will come under intense pressure from the hard-working Wolves striker Kevin Doyle. The 26-year-old, signed last summer from Reading for a club record £6.5million, is “the business” according to Bull, who still holds all the scoring records at Wolves.
Bull, 44, said: “Look, I watch this lad every week, he’s the business. I’d put him in my side, even if I was at Manchester United or Arsenal.
“He’s been working up front on his own. He runs hard, chases everything – and he’s a real sniffer in the box. He’d be a handful for anyone – and I can see John Terry getting at least a booking on Saturday trying to keep Doyle quiet.”
With Wolves coming off the back of a 1-0 win over Spurs and Chelsea losing 2-1 to Everton in their last Premier League clash – when Terry was at fault for both Louis Saha goals – Bull insists: “I can really see Wolves pulling off another of those shock results.
“I know it’s going to be hard, but the way Mick McCarthy has got them playing against the big clubs – giving 100 percent, rolling up their sleeves, working for each other – suggests to me Chelsea are in for a hard time.”
With financial problems hitting clubs from Cardiff to Portsmouth, Southend to Notts County, Bull says: “I felt for Mick in the transfer window. It’s a struggle when you can’t sign big players, but he’s got those boys working. Wolves are young, eager, keen – and McCarthy knows some of the players demanding the big money out there won’t roll up their sleeves and give their all.
“I watch every Wolves home game and I travel to the away games sometimes too – I can tell you there are no big-time Charlies in this team. But Chelsea have two great strikers – Didier Drogba and Nicolas Anelka – so it will be tough. Half a chance and they’ll have you.”
Chelsea play old boss Jose Mourinho’s Inter Milan next Wednesday and Bull insists: “If Wolves can take something off them on Saturday, it will shake Chelsea’s confidence before one of their biggest games in recent years.
“With the Champions League coming up after the Wolves game, they’ll want a win and they’re a great side. But Wolves got a 0-0 draw against Liverpool last month, they’ve beaten Spurs twice and they can produce another upset if they work as hard as they did against Spurs last time out.”
Worryingly, Wolves were crushed 4-0 at Stamford Bridge when the teams met in November and, with 10 goals, nobody has scored less at home this season.
Doyle (pictured) is top-scorer with just six strikes this season and Bull, who scored a record 250 in 474 League games for the club, grins when he is reminded of how much he cost when he moved from West Brom in 1999: “It was a joint deal with Andy Thompson,” he recalls, “And they paid £65,000. Doyle cost £6.5m. That’s how times have changed. But given the way he works on his own up front, Doyle will prove he’s worth that. I’m sure of it.”
On the thorny subject of Terry and Manchester City’s Wayne Bridge, Bull – who played for England in the 1990 World Cup despite never reaching the top flight with Wolves (they failed at the play-offs in 1995 and 97) – said: “They have to get their heads together. As far as I’m concerned it doesn’t matter what has happened off the field.
“Terry has proved he can play well no matter what is happening in his life, now Bridge has to show he can put England first. They may already have sorted this out. They have to for the sake of our World Cup hopes.”
Terry, who missed Chelsea's FA Cup win over Cardiff last weekend to see his wife Toni in Dubai, has fallen out with Bridge since news of the Chelsea captain’s relationship with Vanessa Perroncel – the mother of Bridge’s son – broke three weeks ago. While Terry lost the captaincy, Bridge was rumoured to be considering international retirement over the affair.
But Bull reckons all this could just make the squad stronger. He recalls: “In 1990 we were under incredible pressure off the pitch. But we pulled together for Bobby Robson. We worked as a team and we got to the semi-finals.
“That’s what this England team have to do in South Africa this summer. Bond together. Don’t let anything affect them. And that’s what I expect them to do.”
Steve Bull was speaking at the launch of Sportingbet’s Wolves accumulator www.sportingbet.com/wolves. Every time you beat Bully in the Sportingbet accumulator (predicting match result, match scoreline and first goalscorer), you earn a free £5 bet. But you’ll have your work cut out. Bull laughs: “I have a little flutter on the horses and football but I’m worried Sportingbet are going to fire me - my account is bulging at the moment, I must be doing something right!”
Bull believes Terry will come under intense pressure from the hard-working Wolves striker Kevin Doyle. The 26-year-old, signed last summer from Reading for a club record £6.5million, is “the business” according to Bull, who still holds all the scoring records at Wolves.
Bull, 44, said: “Look, I watch this lad every week, he’s the business. I’d put him in my side, even if I was at Manchester United or Arsenal.
“He’s been working up front on his own. He runs hard, chases everything – and he’s a real sniffer in the box. He’d be a handful for anyone – and I can see John Terry getting at least a booking on Saturday trying to keep Doyle quiet.”
With Wolves coming off the back of a 1-0 win over Spurs and Chelsea losing 2-1 to Everton in their last Premier League clash – when Terry was at fault for both Louis Saha goals – Bull insists: “I can really see Wolves pulling off another of those shock results.
“I know it’s going to be hard, but the way Mick McCarthy has got them playing against the big clubs – giving 100 percent, rolling up their sleeves, working for each other – suggests to me Chelsea are in for a hard time.”
With financial problems hitting clubs from Cardiff to Portsmouth, Southend to Notts County, Bull says: “I felt for Mick in the transfer window. It’s a struggle when you can’t sign big players, but he’s got those boys working. Wolves are young, eager, keen – and McCarthy knows some of the players demanding the big money out there won’t roll up their sleeves and give their all.
“I watch every Wolves home game and I travel to the away games sometimes too – I can tell you there are no big-time Charlies in this team. But Chelsea have two great strikers – Didier Drogba and Nicolas Anelka – so it will be tough. Half a chance and they’ll have you.”
Chelsea play old boss Jose Mourinho’s Inter Milan next Wednesday and Bull insists: “If Wolves can take something off them on Saturday, it will shake Chelsea’s confidence before one of their biggest games in recent years.
“With the Champions League coming up after the Wolves game, they’ll want a win and they’re a great side. But Wolves got a 0-0 draw against Liverpool last month, they’ve beaten Spurs twice and they can produce another upset if they work as hard as they did against Spurs last time out.”
Worryingly, Wolves were crushed 4-0 at Stamford Bridge when the teams met in November and, with 10 goals, nobody has scored less at home this season.
Doyle (pictured) is top-scorer with just six strikes this season and Bull, who scored a record 250 in 474 League games for the club, grins when he is reminded of how much he cost when he moved from West Brom in 1999: “It was a joint deal with Andy Thompson,” he recalls, “And they paid £65,000. Doyle cost £6.5m. That’s how times have changed. But given the way he works on his own up front, Doyle will prove he’s worth that. I’m sure of it.”
On the thorny subject of Terry and Manchester City’s Wayne Bridge, Bull – who played for England in the 1990 World Cup despite never reaching the top flight with Wolves (they failed at the play-offs in 1995 and 97) – said: “They have to get their heads together. As far as I’m concerned it doesn’t matter what has happened off the field.
“Terry has proved he can play well no matter what is happening in his life, now Bridge has to show he can put England first. They may already have sorted this out. They have to for the sake of our World Cup hopes.”
Terry, who missed Chelsea's FA Cup win over Cardiff last weekend to see his wife Toni in Dubai, has fallen out with Bridge since news of the Chelsea captain’s relationship with Vanessa Perroncel – the mother of Bridge’s son – broke three weeks ago. While Terry lost the captaincy, Bridge was rumoured to be considering international retirement over the affair.
But Bull reckons all this could just make the squad stronger. He recalls: “In 1990 we were under incredible pressure off the pitch. But we pulled together for Bobby Robson. We worked as a team and we got to the semi-finals.
“That’s what this England team have to do in South Africa this summer. Bond together. Don’t let anything affect them. And that’s what I expect them to do.”
Steve Bull was speaking at the launch of Sportingbet’s Wolves accumulator www.sportingbet.com/wolves. Every time you beat Bully in the Sportingbet accumulator (predicting match result, match scoreline and first goalscorer), you earn a free £5 bet. But you’ll have your work cut out. Bull laughs: “I have a little flutter on the horses and football but I’m worried Sportingbet are going to fire me - my account is bulging at the moment, I must be doing something right!”
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