Chelsea captain John Terry has Champions League ban reduced

Monday 13 August 2012 11:30 EDT

John Terry Shown the red card for kneeing Sanchez in the back and while the contact was soft, the referee had no option. 2 (GETTY IMAGES)

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Chelsea captain John Terry will be able to play from the start of the Blues' Champions League campaign after having his three-match ban reduced on appeal by UEFA.

The England defender was sent off in last season's semi-final second leg against Barcelona in the Nou Camp for an off-the-ball clash with Alexis Sanchez.

The offence saw Terry handed an automatic three-match suspension for violent conduct - the first game of which was the final against Bayern Munich, where the Blues won the europe's top prize for the first time after a dramatic penalty shoot-out.

However, UEFA have partially upheld Terry's subsequent appeal, which means he will now also miss the Super Cup clash with Europa League winners Atletico Madrid on August 31, but with the remaining sanction suspended for three years.

A statement from UEFA read: "The UEFA Appeals Body has partially upheld John Terry's appeal against the three-match European ban imposed on the Chelsea FC defender at the end of last season.

"Although the central defender is still suspended for three UEFA club competition matches, the third game of the ban has now been deferred for a probationary period of three years.

"The UEFA Appeals Body decided to partially uphold Terry's appeal against the three-match suspension handed down to him by the UEFA Control and Disciplinary Body on 31 May.

"The England player served the first game of his European ban when he did not participate in the UEFA Champions League final against FC Bayern M|nchen on 19 May. He will also sit out Chelsea's UEFA Super Cup match against Club Atlitico de Madrid on 31 August.

"The original punishment related to Terry's sending-off in the UEFA Champions League semi-final second leg at FC Barcelona on 24 April."

As winners, Chelsea qualified directly for the group stages of the Champions League, taking the place of Tottenham, who had finished above the Blues in fourth place in the Barclays Premier League.

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