England's John Terry, centre, competes with Egypt's Mohamed Nagy during their friendly international football match at Wembley Stadium in London, England on March 3, 2010.PAUL ELLIS
So is the madness over, or has it just begun? Has the wobble of the past few weeks, the Bridge-Terry circus, the Ashley Cole crisis, the Rio Ferdinand concerns, been just a blip or does it foretell calamity in South Africa this summer?
We came to Wembley to be reassured, to rediscover our belief England can (at least) reach its first World Cup semi-final in 20 years. But one look at the defence in what would be a 3-1 exhibition win over Egypt was enough to plunge us back into a world of doubts.
This had nothing to do with centre back John Terry. For most of us, the stripping of the captaincy was never going to derail England's campaign provided the Chelsea player remained in the team.
His escapades have brought a sharp focus on him, and his form has creaked under the pressure (more than his marriage has, by the looks of things). But at Wembley yesterday, aside from one uncertain moment when he was put into retreat, he was the one defender who gave some assurance to the back line.
This occasion had been billed as a journey into a fiery crucible of damnation for the Chelsea leader, with his new Travis Bickle-lite crop, but it almost turned out a mild, pleasant evening compared with those hellish expectations.
It may have been a personal embarrassment to be back in the ranks and to be given abuse at all by a crowd who normally acclaims him. But for every fan who jeered his name as the teams were read out, there were several more trying to drown out the boos. And no wonder. Terry was perhaps the only member of yesterday's back five who did not make manager Fabio Capello anxious.
Even he had looked nervous as he emerged from the tunnel, fourth in line rather than leading from the front. After all the build-up, the 12-minute "sacking" in Capello's office at Wembley, he was entitled to be worried and when his first, slightly heavy, pass after 12 seconds ran straight into touch, he must have feared whether floating supporters might get on his back.
Perhaps he should give thanks that, in a jittery first half at least, Matthew Upson, Wes Brown and Leighton Baines looked even more nervous alongside him.
The pitch can share the blame for Upson's slip that allowed Mohamed Zidan to score after 23 minutes but, on the touchline, Fabio Capello's grimace suggested that he would not be accepting the turf as an excuse from the West Ham United defender or Robert Green, who never looked like diving across in time.
By contrast, Terry was a dominant presence, intercepting and, when possible, striding out with the ball at his feet. He was, as Capello had instructed, a leader even without an armband.
We were left to wonder if any of those alongside him would be there when England begins its 2010 World Cup campaign against the United States.
The Times, London