The Chelsea FC captain is out of contract at the end of this season, but has insisted that he still feels physically fit and is hungry to continue his Blues career
John Terry has been among the best defenders in the Premier League for over a decade now, and the 35-year-old has expressed his desire to continuing plying his trade in England’s top flight with Chelsea FC in the coming seasons.
The former England international is out of contract at the end of this season, but insists he is not panicking about the situation given he was in a not-too-dissimilar one at this time last year. The results this season mean that the Blues’ captain is, if anything, even more important to the first-team.
Luckily for Chelsea FC, Terry has had no thoughts about leaving Stamford Bridge as yet. He is quoted by the Guardian as saying: “Physically, for me, I’m probably feeling as good as I’ve ever felt in the last two or three years. I’m still in the right state of mind, I’m still hungry, I want to be here, I want to finish my career here.
“Last year it was a couple of months from now before things got sorted out, so the most important thing is getting us out of this [situation] and up that league table. But hopefully that will come. I just have to keep plugging away.”
The centre-back, who is just six appearances away from reaching the 700 mark for the club, also slammed ‘lazy’ criticism of him regarding his lack of pace. “For me, I think when you get to a certain age, a lot of people out there start saying: ‘He’s 35, almost 36, maybe his legs have gone,'” added Terry. “But I’ve never had ‘legs’. It’s as simple as that.
“I’ve never been quick, all my career. Everyone gets it in their heads that it’s a problem but it’s lazy to suggest that.”
Chelsea FC must keep Terry at the club
At the risk of stating the obvious, Terry is absolutely priceless to Chelsea FC, who must do everything in their power to keep him at the club. Not only is the Englishman still a very good defender, but his influence in the dressing room and his impact on the younger players — Kurt Zouma in particular — cannot be underestimated.
The Blues will have to look for a younger centre-back this summer and, if they do get one, there will be few mentors better than Terry to help him settle in at he club.
Interim manager Guus Hiddink echoed the sentiment of the overwhelming majority of the Stamford Bridge faithful, saying: “His commitment in capitals – in capitals – is huge for this team and this club. He’s also progressing Kurt. I saw him [Zouma] from a distance previously and sometimes he was a little bit out of position but he’s progressed very fast in the last year alongside Terry.
“We need those kind of players but John is also doing his job defensively very well.”