John Terry is about as famous for his on-field achievements as he is for his off field antics. The Chelsea legend has joined the ranks of Aston Villa led by Steve Bruce.
Reports suggested that the players were thrilled with the signing and Steve Bruce was of course, ecstatic at the arrival of the former Premier league and Champions league winner.
Many have questioned why John Terry made this move.
Why didn’t Terry just retire?
It can be argued that John Terry’s fitness was never a doubt at Chelsea until last season. Terry enjoyed a largely injury-free time during his career at Stamford Bridge.
He currently has a personal trainer and it has been suggested by him that any query in relation to Terry’s fitness would be entirely incorrect. However, the stats don’t lie.
Last season, Terry started just six league games. This would suggest that the Chelsea legend is incapable of producing a strong 90 minutes of football over a prolonged period.
The 46 game season with Aston Villa may prove to be a bridge too far.
A club in transition
Aston Villa are currently a club in transition and last year finished 13th in the Championship.
The season promised so much after being relegated from the Premier League the following year, it was assumed that the Villans would challenge for promotion.
The enigmatic owner Randy Lerner sold the club to Tony Xi who appointed former Champions League winning manager Roberto DiMatteo as boss.
It quickly became apparent that the Championship would not be a stroll in the park and DiMatteo was dismissed with Steve Bruce taking over the reigns.
By this point in the season, the chance of automatic promotion was nearly impossible and a 13th place finish was not seen as a major underachievement.
It is therefore, clear to see that Terry is joining a club in transition, at best, and not one competing for trophies.
What has John Terry got to gain from this move?
He surely had better offers in the Premier League, China and from the MLS; despite the 5 million pounds a year contract.
The rumour around this deal began to circulate following a picture that appeared on the internet of John Terry and Steve Bruce on a golf course.
This was Bruce’s attempt at luring Terry to Villa. This was a master stroke by Bruce and led to the Villa signing the 36 year old centre back.
It can be argued that, Terry could so easily have picked retirement and by choosing to join Aston Villa it may show that he is determined to drive them to success next season.
Bruce will say that all the clauses and bonuses crammed into his contract will be worth it if he can lead Aston Villa back into the big time after their difficult first season in the Championship.
Only time will tell on whether this will be a good move for both parties.
Written by Andrew John Carroll
Follow Andrew on Twitter @AndyDCarroll
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