Cole praises ‘exceptional’ Terry

(GSM) – Joe Cole hailed Chelsea captain John Terry as exceptional player and said “he is the best defender in the world”.

England coach Fabio Capello had called for Terry to put up a big performance after a verbal abuse with him and the defender played a significant role on Wednesday’s clash with Slovenia, making a robust intervention to rob Robert Ljubijankic of the ball beside David James’s near post.

The Chelsea winger Cole said: “You can’t knock JT. He is the best centre-half in the world and some of the blocks and the tackles were brilliant.

“He has played with three different partners and is the heartbeat of the side. He is an exceptional player.

“We’ve got so many good leaders in the team and it was a great performance from him. I’ve never been involved in such a tense game and I have played in a Champions League Final and FA Cup Finals.

“There was a lot of nervous energy out there. I am happy I did what I did when I came on.

“I got hold of the ball and slowed the game down and managed to limit their passing,” the 28-year-old added.