Aston Villa are hoping their captain will sign a new deal if they clinch promotion to the Premier League this weekend.
Aston Villa are hoping captain John Terry will sign a new deal at Villa Park, but the contract will not include a bizarre clause to convince him to sign.
Terry is coming to the end of his current one-year deal and could re-sign if Villa seal promotion by beating Fulham this weekend, and the defender is reported to have asked the Championship club to include a clause that prevents him from facing his former club, Chelsea, in the future.
However, Villa boss Steve Bruce has said the Premier League are concerned about the clause and it is unlikely to be sanctioned – and rightly so.
Professional footballers – especially those of Terry’s stature – should be willing to play against anyone for their current club, no matter where their loyalties lie.
Take Frank Lampard, for example. He left Chelsea as a club legend and all-time top goalscorer but returned to the Premier League as a Manchester City player, played against his former club and even scored against them.
His celebrations were understandably muted but it showed that Lampard, as a professional, was able to put his loyalties aside and do his best for the club he was playing for at the time.
Bruce has said that he is willing to let Terry sit any clashes with Chelsea out if Villa do seal their return to the top flight, but it is hard to believe that any manager would keep their star defender on the bench against sides like the Blues purely because of a gentleman’s agreement.
If Villa are promoted this summer, they will need all their top players available and ready to fight for the shirt, no matter who they are facing.
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