As Fabio Capello decides whether John Terry should remain England’s captain, he may be consoled to learn that a former U.S. football coach faced the same dilemma.
Steve Sampson has admitted dropping ex-Sheffield Wednesday player John Harkes from the 1998 World Cup side amid claims of an affair with team-mate Eric Wynalda’s wife.
The news comes just days after Terry was accused of having an affair with former Chelsea team-mate Wayne Bridge’s girlfriend.
Italian Capello, who has managed England for three years, has yet to formally announce whether Terry will keep the job he has held since 2006
Wynalda himself brought up the situation on the 'Fox Football Fone-In' on Monday during a discussion of Terry’s behaviour.
‘There’s a lot of similarities between what happened to us in “98 and what’s happening now to England,’ he said.
‘It’s an unfortunate time for England, because I know how that can affect a team firsthand. Obviously, we all know how we did in the World Cup in 98.’
In response, Sampson said he was glad to open up about the Harkes situation, which saw the U.S. lose all its games in the competition held in France.
‘Maybe people will have a little better of an understanding of what happened in the final months leading up to the World Cup,’ he said.
‘It wasn’t about losing 2-0 to Germany or losing to Iran. There was more to it than that that impacted I believe the outcome of this team.’
Sampson said he acted after former QPR player Roy Wegerle approached him between the February 1998 game against Belgium and the March game against Paraguay and told him of the affair.
But he defends hiding the real reason behind Harkes being dropped from the squad.
‘I felt that these are the kinds of issues that need to stay in the locker room and within the team and not be exposed to the public,’ he said.
‘The private issues for me were the most serious issues. I think I could have lived with everything else and kept John on the team if it had not been for the private issues.
‘It’s one thing to have an affair outside the team. It’s another to have one inside. There are just certain lines that one cannot cross.
‘Maybe now people will have a little bit more of an understanding as to why I made such a critical decision back in 1998.
‘The last thing I wanted to do was drop John Harkes from the team because I really did believe that he was an outstanding leader on the field.’
Wynalda said he felt he had to speak out following the revelations about Terry, as he said it reminded him of his own problems back in 1998.
‘I’m calling it an inappropriate relationship. It was a major contributor to why I’m no longer married.
‘I’ve suffered quite a bit through this whole process. My healing is over, so I’m OK to talk about it.’
Wynalda and his wife separated in 2003 before divorcing.
Harkes won 90 caps for his country before being dropped at the age of 31.
At the time Sampson claimed the player refused to play in a more defensive role and also cited ‘leadership issues.’
‘I am not going to rehash the things that have happened in the past,’ said Harkes.
‘1998 was devastating to me and my family. It was hard enough not to play in the World Cup, but it was even difficult to go through that time period, the most difficult time period of my life.’
