John Terry is a step closer to his Premier League return after Aston Villa defeated Birmingham City to move into an automatic promotion slot. The Chelsea legend is as crucial to the Villains’ ambitions as he was for all his years at Stamford Bridge.
Aston Villa moved into second-place in the Championship after beating Birmingham City 2-0. This is their first time in an automatic promotion berth since dropping into the second tier in 2016. John Terry’s homecoming to Stamford Bridge wearing claret is now a very real possibility for Chelsea’s 2018/19 season.
Chelsea’s eternal Captain, Leader, Legend is currently filling two of those roles at Aston Villa. Terry has been Villa’s captain across his 21 starts this season. He missed 10 games with a broken foot, but has otherwise been a constant in defence. Even with the injury he is one of nine players start more than 20 games.
Solidity at the core of the back-line has been key to Aston Villa’s season, as Terry’s partner James Chester is the only outfield player to play in every league minute. Villa has allowed the third-fewest goals in the Championship this season.
Terry and Chester are well-matched in the centre of Villa’s defence. Terry leads the team with 1.4 interceptions per game. The former Chelsea man has 6.8 clearances per game (142 total), behind only Chester among players with over 1000 minutes. The pair are 1-2 for blocked shots, and Terry also has the best percentage of aerial duels won, with 63%.
Terry cited the novel challenge of a promotion push when he left Chelsea for Aston Villa. After a mediocre start the Villains have found their stride in the new year, winning five straight and seven of their last eight. Terry is a mainstay in the side, the elder statesman among an already old and experienced team (Terry is 37, the average age of Villa’s roster is 29).
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Aston Villa’s next match is just down the road at Fulham, offering Chelsea fans and players a chance to check in with the legend. Next season he may be back at Stamford Bridge. Hopefully that will go better for Chelsea than that time they faced Frank Lampard wearing the wrong shade of blue.