With just one managerial vacancy going in the top two tiers of English football, John Terry could find himself waiting for an early-season sacking unless Swansea City make an approach for the now former Aston Villa assistant head coach.
The 40-year-old left his role as Villa assistant on Monday, with boss Dean Smith admitting he was “disappointed” to lose his right-hand man less than three weeks before the new Premier League season starts.
Terry said it was an “extremely difficult” decision after three years under Smith’s tutelage, but added the time is right to move on and pursue his ambition of becoming a manager outright.
Swansea are the only club in the Premier League or Championship without a manager after Steve Cooper left last week, and while that has shortened Terry’s odds with the bookmakers, the ex-England and Chelsea skipper appears to favour a European tour over jumping into the next available role.
“My immediate plan is to spend some quality time with my family and, thereafter, hopefully take up some invitations to visit clubs and managers around Europe to develop my aim and objective of becoming a manager,” Terry said.
“It has always been my ambition to move into football management and, providing the right opportunity presents itself, I feel ready to take up such a challenge.”
The desire for family time and ventures abroad comes as The Athletic report that former Chelsea assistant Jody Morris and MK Dons boss Russell Martin have emerged as frontrunners for the Swansea vacancy, suggesting Terry will not simply walk into a new job by virtue of being a Premier League great.
John Terry next permanent job
Odds per Betfair as of 26 July:
- Swansea 1-8
- Crystal Palace 10-1
- Aston Villa 16-1
- Fulham 20-1
- West Brom 25-1
- QPR 40-1
- Chelsea 50-1
With Swansea’s eyes seemingly searching elsewhere, Terry appears to have more time to plot out his route into management, even if he does have to wait until the domestic season gets under way.
Eager to strengthen his CV, work experience outings to Rome or Madrid could be in the offing for Terry given he played under Jose Mourinho and Carlo Ancelotti (among plenty of others) at Chelsea. Any future move to a Championship club would see him follow in the footsteps of former England teammates Frank Lampard and Wayne Rooney by kickstarting his career as No 1 in a second-tier dugout.
He is therefore not short of managerial influences, nor old pals to call upon for dos and don’ts – like, for example, not taking charge of your former club too early into your career – but exactly what sort of manager Terry will be can only become apparent now he has stepped out of Smith’s shadow.
Two England internationals have given us a glimpse of how Terry could operate as manager. Jack Grealish said he turned to his coach for advice on how he could emulate aspects of Lampard’s game. Meanwhile, Tyrone Mings evidently benefitted from Terry’s centre-back expertise on his own journey into the England set-up.
“After a game we’ll watch clips of my game back and he’ll then tell me what he likes and what he doesn’t like,” Mings said in 2019 after earning his first England call-up.
“He’s worked under such great managers and he’s obviously got all the experience that I would love to have, so things that he tells me really stick. He gives me a little bit of criticism but also positivity. He tries to tell me to go through a game without being seen or without being mentioned.”
Mings’ Villa centre-back partner Ezri Konsa also described the benefits of Terry’s input when watching previous performances back, highlighting how Terry seems well aware that man-management is key for the modern-day player.
Meanwhile, Smith’s own route up the ladder, from lower-league player to manager of Walsall, Brentford and then Villa, may contrast the course Terry is set to take as a former England international whose name is known the world over. Even so, the pair worked together on the understanding that they would inevitably part ways.
“He’s come in to learn the trade to ultimately become a No 1,” Smith said last season while both Bournemouth and Celtic looked for new managers, adding: “He wants to go into management but there’s got to be a right time and the right club for him.”
The time is now, or soon, it would appear, but where exactly remains a mystery – for perhaps a few weeks or months at least.
from Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/3BFjml3
Post a Comment