The Athletic journalist Gregg Evans has detailed why John Terry left Aston Villa at the start of this summer.
The former Chelsea man signed for the Villans on a one-year contract in 2017. He was made club captain and played 32 games across the season. At the end of that contract, he decided to hang up his boots and instead join Dean Smith’s coaching team.
However, ahead of the 2021/22 Premier League campaign, the former defender decided to call it quits on his time at Villa.
Evans has now provided some detailed insight into how Terry left the club, and why he chose the beginning of the summer for his exit.
Discussing the topic on the 1874 podcast, the journalist said: “The situation was, John Terry told Dean Smith that he wasn’t really feeling it this season, and that he was going to move on.
“He wants to become a manager at some point. So he told him at the very start of the summer: ‘Look, I want to give you the most amount of time to find a replacement. So I’m leaving’.”
TIF Thoughts on John Terry and Aston Villa…
Terry certainly had a distinguished career as a player, winning the Champions League, Premier League, FA Cup and more during his time with Chelsea.
With so much experience at the peak of the game, it should come as no surprise that the Englishman has managerial ambitions – he may well look at Chelsea legend Frank Lampard as an example to learn from.
He could also have an eye on fellow former England star Wayne Rooney who has now moved into management with Derby County.
While Terry is still without a job it feels like only a matter of time before he starts getting linked with a managerial opportunity at one of England’s many top clubs.