LONDON — The English Football Association (FA) has rejected Chelsea defender John Terry's claims that an investigation into his alleged racial abuse of an opponent during a Premier League match last year had forced him to retire from England duty. The 31-year-old former national captain brought his England career to an abrupt end Sunday, saying his position in the national team had become “untenable” due to the Football Association's impending case against him. The Chelsea skipper stood before a Football Association tribunal set to last four days on Monday, facing charges of racially abusing Queens Park Rangers defender Anton Ferdinand last October despite being acquitted in the law courts in July. The Football Association General Secretary, Alex Horne, dismissed Terry's objections to the hearing, saying that the governing body was not responsible for the player's decision to retire. “It's a personal decision. I don't see how we have made it untenable, they are two very separate processes,” Horne told the British media Monday. “It's something that happened in a match - it shouldn't be taking a year to resolve but we feel we are reaching a conclusion on that. “That's a very different process from our England procedures; they sit in different compartments and I could separate the two in my mind, but it doesn't look like he could.” Former Chelsea manager Avram Grant Tuesday slammed the Football Association (FA) for taking action against Terry, but admitted he was surprised by the player's decision to end his England career. Terry returned to FA headquarters at Wembley stadium in northwest London Tuesday morning for the second day of a disciplinary hearing over a charge he used racist language toward QPR defender Anton Ferdinand. “Nobody thinks that John Terry is a racist, so the Football Association needs to leave it,” Grant, who coached Chelsea from 2007-2008, told BBC radio. “John likes to fight and he's very passionate about the national team so I was surprised. But he's not a child — he knows what he's doing. One thing I must say about JT is that he's not a racist, that's for sure. He's a good man.” If found guilty of racially abusing Ferdinand, Terry could face a lengthy ban similar to the eight-match one served by Liverpool's Luis Suarez last season. London-born Terry, capped 78 times since his debut in 2003 including appearances in two World Cups, has spent his entire career with Chelsea since joining the European champion as a 14-year-old. — Agencies
