John Terry last night hailed Fabio Capello for backing him to the hilt during the England captaincy saga that led to the Italian's shock resignation.
Capello quit as manager last month after the Football Association stripped Terry of the armband ahead of his trial for racially abusing QPR defender Anton Ferdinand.
Terry, who denies any wrongdoing, spoke for the first time about Capello's departure during Chelsea's pre-match press conference ahead of tonight's Champions League last-16 second leg against Napoli.
The Blues had requested no questions on England but, when asked about Capello by an Italian journalist, Terry was unable to bite his tongue.
"Quite clearly, Fabio backed me," he said.
"That comes from a relationship with myself and him, the relationship we built up.
"I stood for him on the football pitch, and he stood up for me off the pitch.
"I respect that from him, I respect him as a man and for what he did for me. Complete respect both ways."
The FA were content for Terry to remain as captain when the allegations against him first emerged and even after he was charged.
But once his trial date was set after the European Championship, they performed a U-turn, a decision Capello completely disagreed with.
The Italian's successor, currently interim manager Stuart Pearce, will be free to select Terry for Euro 2012 but not to restore him as skipper.
