Terry confirms he will not appeal racial abuse ban

We have confirmation now of John Terry's decision not to appeal the four-game suspension handed down by the FA over the Anton Ferdinand affair -- and, indeed, a statement from Terry himself:

After careful consideration, I have decided not to appeal against the FA judgment.

I want to take this opportunity to apologise to everyone for the language I used in the game against Queens Park Rangers last October.

Although I'm disappointed with the FA judgment, I accept that the language I used, regardless of the context, is not acceptable on the football field or indeed in any walk of life.

As I stated in the criminal case, with the benefit of hindsight my language was clearly not an appropriate reaction to the situation for someone in my position.

My response was below the level expected by Chelsea Football Club, and by me, and it will not happen again.

Looking forward, I will continue to do my part in assisting the club to remove all types of discriminatory behaviour from football.

I am extremely grateful for the consistent support of Chelsea FC, the fans and my family.

The Chelsea skipper will miss this weekend's match against Tottenham Hotspur, the doubleheader against Manchester United and then the league tie against Swansea City at the Liberty Stadium, although barring an internal suspension he will be available for the Champions League match against Shakhtar Donetsk in midweek. Terry will also pay a £220,000 fine, and I'd hope that the club will impose a fine of their own (and donate the money to charity).

Regardless of how poorly the FA may or may not have handled the case, the club has lost a lot of cachet over the course of this saga, and there's probably still fallout yet to come. Roberto di Matteo's presser on Friday's going to be very interesting indeed.