Chelsea Blogs

Time Waits for No Man Not Even a Legend

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Like his fellow legend and also his close friend Frank Lampard, John Terry chose to, once his Chelsea career was up, play for another club.

For Lampard, his career swansong saw him play for Manchester City and then head off to New York. For John, he chose to drop into the Championship to do his utmost to try and help Aston Villa regain their Premier League status.

Sadly, for Aston Villa, on the anniversary of their remarkable European Cup win, against Bayern Munich, in Rotterdam, back in 1982, their ambition was to fall at the final hurdle when they were beaten, 1-0, by Fulham.

The defeat now begs us to ask the question, will John Terry soldier on for another season or will the 37-year-old decide to hang up his boots?

The pre-match indications were that an Aston Villa victory would see John play on for another season, but can the veteran harness enough inspiration to play his part in mounting another promotion campaign?

Watching John, against Fulham, he didn’t disgrace himself with his performance although it was noticeable he was relying more and more on his footballing instincts as opposed to any pace.

But, as we all know with John, it isn’t just about what he brings onto the pitch, his man-management and motivational skills put him head and shoulders above most others.

Once the final whistle, at Wembley, had blown, the Aston Villa players were distraught, their dream had died, and tears were flowing, but John made sure that, as captain, he rallied his side and there was a touching moment when he chose to console Jack Grealish who had been Aston Villa’s best player by a country mile.

John clasped Grealish’s head and whispered some words of advice in his ear, words that will serve Grealish well as he builds on a career that has shown so much promise.

Now, whether John will be around at Villa Park next season remains to be seen, his heart will be telling him to continue but his head may realise that it is now time, after a magnificent career, to hang his boots up.

If that is the case, come back to Stamford Bridge John, it’s your spiritual home and your presence was sorely missed last season when your assuring words and motivational skills could have made so much difference.

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