In John Terry's 'first-class seat' row revelations, only one person comes out looking stupid - and it's not him, writes SIMON JORDAN

John Terry has always been someone who divides opinion – as my interview with the former Chelsea captain last week proved.

I sat down with Terry for my podcast to reflect on his career but it was one episode in our conversation that seemed to cause the biggest stir, certainly on social media.

Terry revealed a story about Andre Villas-Boas’s first pre-season at Stamford Bridge and his decision to allow young players to fly first class to Hong Kong while more established stars were stuck back in economy.

He recounted how he made it clear to Chelsea’s new manager that if the situation was not rectified then the plane would not be taking off.

Terry, a player I had great admiration for, was subsequently criticised by the judge and jury on social media for undermining the Chelsea manager.

I have a different take on it. Now as a former owner, I’d always advocate for my manager to be my champion but if you’re going to pick a fight with players, you need to win it, otherwise don’t pick it.

Villas-Boas picked a fight with players but seemingly had no sense behind it. If you do something without substance, people lose faith and respect for you. You’re not dealing with children, you’re dealing with highly-paid, professional footballers. You need to know when to pick a fight, what the fight looks like and what the outcome will be, win or lose.

You need your manager to be mature enough to know which fights to pick so players know who’s boss. Of course I would have told the players to do as they’re told in future but would have also questioned what on earth the manager was playing at. You’re making me intercept a situation and put me in a position I don’t want to be all because you’ve engineered a confrontation you can’t win – or are not prepared to win. A good fight is one you win, not one you put up.

So, my bigger disappointment would undoubtedly have been with the manager, not the players. What a stupid thing it was to do and something that would make me question whether he was worthy of the responsibility as manager because he didn’t know when to wield it.

I obviously wouldn’t want a culture at my club where players are getting ahead of themselves but when the manager displays these traits you’ve got a bigger problem because he doesn’t have the wherewithal or judgement to affect outcomes.

Whatever people’s opinions of Terry, it was the manager who looked like a fool in this episode.

Ange's Spurs can learn from Arteta's Arsenal 

Ange Postecoglou has given Tottenham fans something that has been missing for a few seasons – exciting, attacking and inspiring football.

The feelgood factor he has generated this season, however, will soon be extinguished if he is unable to replace that with a more accomplished, mature approach.

The goodwill and magnificent support he has received from supporters will pivot at some point into: ok, now we need to win.

This is the reality for all managers and Postecoglou will be no different.

Next season will be important for him because he walked into a club that was braced for the departure of Harry Kane, out of Europe and with fans feeling a little down in the dumps after the bun fight that was the last knocking of Antonio Conte’s reign.

Expectations were low and Postecoglou raised the bar. Whatever happens in their final five games, starting at Stamford Bridge tonight, he has exceeded expectations. But he will need to raise the bar again and do what north London rivals Arsenal have done under Mikel Arteta, which is improve season on season.

Spurs have been good at delivering the eye candy stuff and are one of the most aesthetically pleasing teams in the Premier League but Postecoglou needs to move the needle to the point where Tottenham are following the progress Arsenal clearly have made.

It’s not just a question of building a culture as he has done so far, it’s also a question of finance. Last weekend’s derby showed me they’re not accomplished enough yet and are unable to overcome adversity.

They will need to spend more money to match the ideals Postecoglou has. Daniel Levy need only look down the road to see what can happen when you back a manager with significant funds.

Mikel Arteta has spent big – eclipsing even Manchester City during his five years in charge – but he has generally spent well. That is what Tottenham will need to do if they want to keep progressing.

James Maddison was a big disappointment on Sunday and has struggled to recapture his early season form after his injury lay-off. I have my doubts about players such as Pedro Porro and Dejan Kulusevski too, while Timo Werner is a speedboat without a brain. I’m not convinced they are good enough and Postecoglou will need to upgrade a number of players if Spurs are to close the gap on the teams above them.

Against Arsenal they huffed and they puffed and dominated the ball but the game got away from them too easily and the result showed how far they have to go before they can challenge the best teams in the country.

As painful as it may be to admit for Spurs fans, that is something Arsenal undoubtedly are now under Arteta.

There is a greater look of accomplishment about them these days and they have replaced Liverpool as City’s biggest threat. That’s what happens when you back your manager. Mikel Arteta’s had five years to shape this particular clay into the formidable team they have become.

But having said all that, I still see them falling just short in the title race.

Looking at the remaining fixtures, it’s very difficult to see where City will slip up. They just roll on and do what they do, which is win games when the pressure is on.

Arsenal could well end up with 89 points, which in the pre-Pep Guardiola days would normally have been enough to win the title. Not anymore. Increasingly, you need 90-plus points and even that might not be enough, as Liverpool will attest.

Arsenal’s defeat at home to Aston Villa was obviously damaging, but the biggest danger sign for Arsenal was when City were knocked out of the Champions League, because it ensured their focus shifted to winning the title.

A lesser club, lesser manager and lesser players might have been affected by such adversity but that’s not what this remarkable group of players does. The moment they went out to Real Madrid, I felt the title was theirs – and I stand by that assertion.

My worry for Arsenal and Arteta is that City will keep on winning until Pep Guardiola decides he’s going to leave.

The irony is that Arteta may well be the sorcerer’s apprentice. His success in chasing City, in raising the bar at Arsenal and making himself such admired manager raises the prospect of him perhaps succeeding the sorcerer when Guardiola finally leaves English football. Then there really would be no respite for the Premier League from City’s dominance.

The BBC ARE woke - but that's not why Lawro left 

Mark Lawrenson echoed some of my thoughts when discussing recently how the BBC is 'top of the woke league'.

He's right about that but while I like Mark and have known him for years, nothing lasts forever and no one has a God given right to stay in a job forever.

He had a good run on the BBC but the world moves and something more relevant and commercially broadcastable becomes the order of the day, providing standards don't drop.

That happened with Gary Lineker when he replaced Des Lynam on Match of the Day. Now I'm not a fan of Lineker's but he's a decent presenter and was given time to hone his skills, proving that sometimes you need to take a leap from the establishment to a new generation.

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