Terry applauds the fans at Wembley

John Terry felt he got a good reception from England’s fans during Wednesday’s 3-1 win against Egypt at Wembley.

Terry was playing for England for the first time since losing the captaincy after his alleged affair with the ex-girlfriend of Wayne Bridge.The Chelsea captain, 29, said: “The way they supported me and got behind me was fantastic, I really appreciate that.“There were a few jeers but I can handle that. They are fully entitled to their opinion.”

England boss Fabio Capello stripped Terry of the captaincy following public revelations and allegations about the defender’s private life.

The saga continued as Bridge made himself unavailable for England, saying his position in the squad was “untenable and potentially divisive”.

This was a most important game for him after what happened outside the pitch. He played a fantastic game like I know he can do at this level England manager Fabio Capello

The Manchester City left-back also refused to shake Terry’s hand when the pair met during the league match at Stamford Bridge last weekend.There were concerns that Terry, who has been heckled by away supporters in the Premier League in recent weeks, would be given a hostile reception at Wembley, prompting Wayne Rooney to urge fans not to boo his team-mate.

While there were some jeers aimed at Terry, the centre-back paid tribute to England’s followers and is sure he will win back their full support.”We have a real chance of causing some problems at the World Cup,” he said. “We need a bit of good luck and we need to play well, but we also need everybody behind us, which they will be.

“We have the best fans in the world, it’s as simple as that.”

Capello, who has warned his players that any future misdemeanours will not be tolerated and also stated that Terry will not regain the captaincy while he is coach, also praised the crowd’s reaction to his former skipper.The Italian said: “Thank you for the crowd. They supported the team and John Terry.“This was a most important game for him after what happened outside the pitch. He played a fantastic game like I know he can do at this level.”Terry also received support from Tottenham striker Peter Crouch, who came on at half-time at Wembley and scored two goals to lead England to victory.Crouch said: “Whichever way the crowd went I don’t think it would affect John Terry’s game.He is a fantastic player and he seems to shrug anything off that’s thrown at him. He performed well again tonight in a good England performance.”

Bridge snubbed Terry when the pair came face-to-face last weeken

Midfielder Gareth Barry admitted the fans were at times hostile towards Terry but felt that changed as the game went on.”He made a couple of challenges, even in the second half, that were jeered,” Barry said.”Initially there may have been a few grumbles, but the fans were brilliant and they realised that we need everyone behind us.”

Barry would have noticed the absence of Bridge from the England squad more than most as they are club-mates at Manchester City.But asked if he felt awkward going into the match, Barry said: “No, not really. It is tough for players to get involved when we meet.”We are coming together as a team and, while I respect Wayne’s decision, we have to be professional about it.”

Capello has made it clear that he would pick Bridge if the defender changed his mind about his availability.And Barry feels that Bridge’s return would strengthen England’s squad for the summer’s World Cup in South Africa.”If Wayne did change his mind, we [as a squad] would be together even more so,” Barry said.