Aston Villa have confirmed the departure of centre-back John Terry. The 37-year-old joined from Chelsea last summer and made 36 appearances in all competitions for the Midlands outfit as they reached the Championship playoff final, ultimately losing to Fulham at Wembley.
“We would like to place on record our most sincere thanks for the effort and professionalism he showed with us last season. John is a true leader and was everything and more that we hoped,” read Villa’s statement from their official website.
“Hugely popular and influential in the dressing room, he played a real captain’s role in creating the incredible bond the players shared with our supporters, and vice-versa. We hope he looks back on his time with Villa fondly and we wish him the very best as his career moves forward.”
Terry formed a potent defensive partnership with James Chester in 2017/18 which saw Villa concede just 42 goals – the second-best defensive record in the division. Steve Bruce’s side finished fourth in the Championship with 83 points from the 46 games.
With Axel Tuanzebe, Tommy Elphick and Christopher Samba as centre-back options, Bruce did have other options at the back, but Terry proved his worth despite his advancing age and was a big reason why Villa went so close to getting back in the Premier League.
Terry was in talks over a contract extension that would see him be able to avoid fixtures against former club Chelsea if Villa earned promotion from the Championship, but now he’s left the club for good and Bruce has to find a worth replacement.
The two-month period Terry was sidelined for with a fracture foot would cost Villa the most in their pursuit for the playoffs, highlighting how influential he was on the pitch. He missed 10 games and Villa dropped points in 50% of the Championship outings.
Terry’s start at Villa didn’t exactly go to plan, as they picked up just one point from their first three games of the season, but he turned things around to get the fans back onside. After suffering two early defeats, the Midlands outfit enjoyed an eight-game unbeaten run to climb back up the table.
They would suffer just two defeats between mid-August and mid-December which saw them go second in the table with 36 points from 18 games. Only Fulham and Cardiff City picked up more points than Villa in 2018 too. There’ll be many regrets over their sloppy start to the season and dip in form without Terry, but Villa are nevertheless grateful such a world-class talent nearly got them to the Premier League.
It’s unknown where he will go from here, but Terry doesn’t appear to be considering retirement just yet. He was happy to stay at Villa Park if they earned promotion, so he’ll surely find himself another club and sign a 12-mnoth deal before considering his future.
After playing 36 games last season, Terry proved there’s life in his old legs, but he may feel he’s earned a move to a slower-paced division abroad. The veteran could join up with ex-Chelsea teammate Ashley Young in the MLS or make a big-money move to the Chinese Super League. Time will tell.