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Chelsea FC player evaluations 2015/16: John Terry

By Daniel Mcclue

LONDON, ENGLAND - MAY 02 : John Terry of Chelsea during the Barclays Premier League match between Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur at Stamford Bridge on May 2, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Catherine Ivill - AMA/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND - MAY 02 : John Terry of Chelsea during the Barclays Premier League match between Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur at Stamford Bridge on May 2, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Catherine Ivill - AMA/Getty Images) /
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Well, now that the dust has settled over the John Terry-Chelsea FC contract saga it’s time to delve into his season review. Wish me luck.

D+. Overshadowed by his contract saga, Terry must take some responsibility for Chelsea’s horrific season. The captain didn’t have his team under control on the pitch and will now have a “different role” for the club next season.. 33 Apps, 1 Goal - CB. England. JOHN TERRY

Whilst John Terry enjoys the sun, fans are left feeling the effects of a tumultuous campaign which included an anxious wait since February to see if Chelsea would offer him a new contract.

In a season which was devoid of leadership from the coaching staff it was important that someone, preferably the captain, stepped up on the pitch. Yet the players seemed unconfident and chaotic.

Of course not all the blame lies on Terry’s shoulders, at times in the season Gary Cahill and Branislav Ivanovic had to take on the role of captain. With Cesc Fabregas, Jon Obi Mikel, Nemanja Matic, etc. experienced players litter the squad.

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Players such as Eden Hazard and Diego Costa didn’t show up until late in the season. But the defence was the main problem throughout. The leader, Terry, has always been a supremely organised centre-back, decisive and impeccable timing in the tackle. Of course, he is now 35-years-old and his abilities will suffer with age.

He was ruled out for more than ten games this season due to injuries; his physical condition is something that will be closely monitored next year. Like Hazard, nagging injuries have affected Terry’s performances.

Whether the players didn’t listen to him this season, or the debacle at the manager’s position threw them off – we may never know.

LONDON, ENGLAND - MAY 15: John Terry of Chelsea is thrown into the air by team mates after the Barclays Premier League match between Chelsea and Leicester City at Stamford Bridge on May 15, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND – MAY 15: John Terry of Chelsea is thrown into the air by team mates after the Barclays Premier League match between Chelsea and Leicester City at Stamford Bridge on May 15, 2016 in London, England. (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images) /

I’m no psychologist so analysing the mental aspects of a strenuous season is out of my league (probably). Instead, lets take a look at this season’s John Terry to previous seasons, focusing on the Premier League:

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All stats are from whoscored.com:

  • Games played: Playing only 24 games this season is his lowest tally since 2012/13 when Rafa Benitez had a personal vendetta against the club legend.
  • Passing accuracy: His accuracy percentage has always been stable around 90%, this season being no different with 89.8% of his passes hitting the mark.
  • Aerial duels won: Terry has always been dominant in the air, in 2014/15 he won 2.6 duels per game, this season he won 2 per game. This may not sound a significant difference but it’s his lowest amount since 2011/12.
  • Interceptions: Up from 0.9 last season to 1.6.
  • Clearances: Last year he made 5.7 clearances per game, this season he only made 3.7.
  • Dribbled past: The exact same number as last season, Terry was only dribbled past 0.3 times per game. Pretty impressive.
  • Blocks: Also exactly the same as the title winning campaign last time around. Making 0.8 blocks per game.

Hmm….

All the stats appear pretty normal, it must have been the mental aspects really influencing him.

Hey look at that, maybe I could be a psychologist after all!

Referee Michael Oliver (R) shows the red card to send off Chelsea's Belgian goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois (L) after a foul on Swansea City's French striker Bafetimbi Gomis (unseen) conceeded a penalty as Chelsea's English defender John Terry (C) reacts during the English Premier League football match between Chelsea and Swansea City at Stamford Bridge in London on August 8, 2015. AFP PHOTO / ADRIAN DENNIS RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or 'live' services. Online in-match use limited to 75 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club/league/player publications. (Photo credit should read ADRIAN DENNIS/AFP/Getty Images)
Referee Michael Oliver (R) shows the red card to send off Chelsea’s Belgian goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois (L) after a foul on Swansea City’s French striker Bafetimbi Gomis (unseen) conceeded a penalty as Chelsea’s English defender John Terry (C) reacts during the English Premier League football match between Chelsea and Swansea City at Stamford Bridge in London on August 8, 2015. AFP PHOTO / ADRIAN DENNIS RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or ‘live’ services. Online in-match use limited to 75 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club/league/player publications. (Photo credit should read ADRIAN DENNIS/AFP/Getty Images) /

One thing that stands out is that Terry had never been sent off more than once in a season until now, he was sent off twice this season – a straight red against West Brom just three games into the campaign and his two yellows against Sunderland (which looked set to be his last game ever for Chelsea). His sudden “lack of discipline” if we could call it that, came at a pretty bad time in this horrible year.

Something I noticed a lot was how out of position Terry was, more regularly than I have ever seen in a whole season. Both goals Tottenham scored against Chelsea in the 2-2 thriller were because he was caught out. Caused by lack of communication or being unaware of his surroundings, seriously re-watch the first goal, Terry was marking a ghost runner.

Next: Player evaluations 2015/16 hub

The future for the Englishman is a complicated and intriguing theory for another day, but we now know for certain he will be back for the 2016/17 season.

I am pleased he is staying on, hopefully we know what the different role is sooner rather than later.

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