Chelsea captain John Terry will be rewarded with a contract extension that will keep him at the club beyond this season, manager Jose Mourinho revealed on Tuesday.
Terry’s current 12-month deal expires at the end of the campaign, but Mourinho says the 34-year-old centre-back’s performances this season persuaded the club to offer him a new deal.
“What I can guarantee is that he will be a Chelsea player next season,” Mourinho told a news conference at the club’s training ground ahead of his side’s match against West Ham United on Wednesday.
“I can guarantee that. To guarantee that, it’s because I know what my board tell me and what the player tells me. No doubts he is going to get his contract, no doubts.”
Asked if terms had been agreed but the deal not yet signed, Mourinho added: “I think it’s around that.”
Mourinho said he also believes he has time to find Terry’s successor in the centre of the Chelsea defence after helping to revive a career that appeared to be on the downturn under the Portuguese’s predecessor Rafael Benitez.
“This is a process where we can take our time, because John is proving again this season that he’s a player for years,” Mourinho said.
“When I came back [in June 2013] he was coming from a difficult period, but last season he was very good, this season I think even better.”
Chelsea lead Manchester City by five points, with City playing host to bottom side Leicester City tonight.
With City having been knocked out of both domestic cup competitions, as well as being 2-1 down to Barcelona in their Uefa Champions League last-16 tie after the first leg, retaining the league title looks City's best hope of silverware this season.
But manager Manuel Pellegrini denied that he was worried about City ending this season empty-handed, having taken home the Premier League title and League Cup in 2013/14.
“I never have any pressure to win an amount of titles and to win a title every year if I want to continue here,” Pellegrini said. “I don’t feel any pressure, especially from the media.
“I feel pressure only when I don’t see my team playing the way I want to do it.”
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