The former England captain John Terry unfortunately won’t be moving to Moscow anytime soon. Whilst a good section of the Russian capital were already celebrating the arrival of one of the most heralded defenders of his generation, the backroom workings between the two parties of Terry and Spartak failed to reach a compromise regarding his mind-boggling mega £3m pay-packet, and the 37-year-old looks set to remain in good old Blighty for the time being.
But where can the evergreen Terry go to now? With his admirable refusal to retire, we take a look at some possible options for centre-back.
Aston Villa
Though his season with the Villains didn’t go exactly to plan with a rise up from the Championship to the top tier, Terry’s inclusion in the heart of Steve Bruce’s defence is a good reason for their progression to the Play-Off Final.
Seeing as he’s rebutted critics dubious of his advancing years and made an astonishing 32 appearances over the course of the season after leaving Chelsea last year, in addition to Villa languishing in mid-table with the second-worst goals conceded in the division, this may not necessarily be the worst bad idea. Aston Villa hierarchy should reconsider paying Terry’s huge salary for at least another season in order to make a legitimate promotion push.
Manchester United
Is a reunion with his former manager Jose Mourinho, with whom he won three Premier League titles, on the cards? United’s shaky defence has dominated headlines, culminating in Mourinho’s worst defeat at home with a 3-0 loss to Spurs at Old Trafford in just to
Not one to take criticism well, Mourinho bringing in Terry could bring the experience and reliability so desperately lacking at the moment, with the Portuguese manager unable to find a decent partnership between Phil Jones, Chris Smalling, Eric Bailly, and Victor Lindelof.
If reports are to be believed as well, Terry would have his back with certain individuals having their knives at the ready.
Celtic
Brendan Rodgers started his third season with the Hoops in uncertain territory, having to deal with problematic chairman Ian Bankier and a certain want away player, as well as an early Champions League exit. Acquiring Terry would further overload Celtic’s hefty £52million wage-bill- almost three times as many as nearest competitor Rangers - but would hopefully bring the stability for a least a year to a defence as they strive for the treble-treble, and hopefully make Boyata take stock of himself.
What’s more, Terry is a self-proclaimed Hoops supporter. His proposed Spartak move interrupted a charity match at Celtic Park, and speaking after a friendly clash against Celtic whilst Chelsea skipper in 2006, he explained:
“I have always been a bit of a Celtic fan.”
BONUS: Derby
One for both the sentimentalist and the punter; Terry is currently backed at around 6/4 to join up with his former brother-in-arms Frank Lampard who's currently in charge of the Rams.
