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Those of you hoping for a volcano erupting or the machine-gun fire of cheap shots may be disappointed.

Evidently some people have been expecting me to return fire after being dug out by John Terry for daring to express opinions about football after playing “at a really bad level” in my career.

First and foremost, I would like to congratulate Terry on his 107th Champions League game for Chelsea in midweek, equalling David Beckham’s record for an Englishman’s appearances in the competition’s history.

He deserves the utmost respect from fellow professionals, past and present, for such a fine achievement.

Terry will always be a legend at Chelsea , even if he struggles to command unanimous adulation beyond Stamford Bridge.

But I was surprised, on the eve of a must-not-lose Champions League tie, with his manager under intense pressure and Chelsea miles off the pace in the title race, that the captain took a little pot-shot in a press conference at a TV pundit who had only said what most of the country was thinking.

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Apparently I am not entitled to venture opinions about Terry on BT Sport, in the Daily Mirror or the BBC Six-0-Six phone-in because I have not won major trophies like fellow pundits Rio Ferdinand, Jamie Carragher or Gary Neville.

I only played 346 games in the Premier League, captained four clubs in the top flight and won 39 international caps. So much for playing at a really bad level.

But this is not about me.

This is about Terry’s remark that he will only accept criticism from ex-players who won trophies and medals with big clubs, like Rio, Carragher and Neville.

John is entitled to his opinion. It’s just a shame he thinks 99 per cent of the football industry – those of us who have not won the title or Champions League medals – is unqualified to express theirs.

From the most casual fan to World Cup winners, football is all about opinions.

(Image: Sky Sports)

Managers pick teams based on their opinion of players. Chairmen hire and fire managers based on opinions in the boardroom.

Journalists and pundits are employed to convey opinions based on what they see. Fans in pubs, schools, factories and offices argue about football on a daily basis.

If criticism is only valid when it comes from old team-mates who played at the very highest level, the game is doomed.

Terry’s own manager Jose Mourinho never played the game at a high standard. He started out as Bobby Robson’s translator. But he became a top coach. When Mourinho expresses an opinion, the whole world listens.

The current England manager, Roy Hodgson, never played League football after being released by Crystal Palace as an 18-year-old.

That did not stop him from coaching three national teams and some of the biggest clubs in Europe. Does his opinion on football matters count?

Terry’s little dig at me, which was greeted by sycophantic laughter from journalists in the room, did not hurt. I get hammered on Twitter, some of it vicious personal abuse, almost on a daily basis.

I wonder where those journalists rank on Terry’s scale of credibility.

They may not have played in Champions League final, but they travel the world watching football and work all hours to report on the game.

But Terry has distanced him from the vast majority of people involved in football because he was effectively saying their opinions don’t matter.

That includes Sunday League amateurs who play the game for sheer enjoyment, and then retire to the pub for a pint and a bowl of chips, and one-club legends like Matt Le Tissier.

(Image: Getty)

That includes supporters who ring Six-0-Six to complain about a refereeing decision or demand a manager’s sacking, and players like Jamie Vardy who climb the pyramid from non-League to England caps.

That includes viewers who send us tweets on the Fletch & Sav show, punters who place bets with William Hill, and every player – professional or part-time – involved in the FA Cup first round this weekend.

I’ve never been an actor, but I know a good film when I see one. Apart from in the shower, I’ve never been a singer, but I know a decent song when I hear it. And I’ve never been a food critic, but I know a good meal when it’s on my plate.

If high-profile players are stung by criticism of their performances, it should be the opinion that hurts, not the person behind it.

In pics – Chelsea vs Dynamo Kiev:

Last week, Trevor Francis said on BT Sport that John Terry’s “legs have gone” – which was more or less what I wrote in this column after Terry was substituted at half-time when Chelsea lost at Manchester City in August.

As the first £1million footballer in Britain, and scorer of the winning goal in a European Cup final, does Trevor have more right to express an opinion than me – even though we are making the same point?

I’m just like John Terry. We are both so lucky to have played football for a living. We have lived the dream of every schoolboy, every Sunday League player, everyone who aspires to walk out at Wembley, Old Trafford, Stamford Bridge.

Each and every one of us is entitled to an opinion, whether the Chelsea captain agrees with us or not.

(Image: Action Images via Reuters / Alex Morton)

Does Terry value the opinions of Chelsea fans who pay good money to watch him every week?

Does he value the opinion of semi-professionals who play the game simply because they love it?

And does he value the opinions of volunteers who are the lifeblood of amateur teams, including the ladies who make the tea?

I’m not aware of any complaints from Terry when he was in my Premier League team of the season for 2014-15. He did not scold me last weekend when I went out of my way to support Mourinho in this column.

If you dismiss 99 per cent of the opinions which circulate in football, all that’s left will be a computer game and a console. You remove all the emotion, all the passion.

I have no axes to grind with John Terry. When I played against him for Blackburn, Birmingham or Derby, I always knew I was in for a tough afternoon because he was one of the best defenders in the business.

But it’s not a crime to play football “at a really bad level”, nor to express honest, balanced opinions about the game.

Perhaps, when I am finished as a media pundit, John will give me a job polishing all those trophies and medals he’s won!