What does Steve Holland’s England role mean for Chelsea?

John Terry will not be coming back into the England setup

When Sam Allardyce was manager, he mentioned that if John Terry was willing, it was possible for him to return to the English National team. In his one game in charge, he did not return Chelsea’s captain to the setup. It’s hard to say whether it would have happened had Allardyce remained manager, but one thing is for certain: Southgate will not be calling him up.

First, it is hard to justify calling up a player that is getting almost no game time. John Terry is a great player, but his age is finally catching up with him. He has not played for Chelsea for quite a while due to injury, but it is unlikely he would even be playing when fully fit. England simply have other options than a player on the last chapter of his career.

Second, Southgate and Holland were the managers of the U21 team. Their appointment is likely backed by the belief that they will be pushing younger players into the first team. The exact opposite of John Terry.

Is Terry a better player than almost every other center back England has? Yes, but that is not the direction the team is moving towards. This means that Terry, who was forced out by the FA in the first place, is not going to be wearing the England shirt again.