John Terry is closing in on his first managerial role with Saudi Pro League side, Al- Shabab.
The 42-year-old, who retired from professional football in 2018, has held senior coaching roles at Leicester and Aston Villa but is set for the top job after he verbally agreed a deal with the Riyadh-based outfit. If the deal goes through, Terry would become the latest Premier League legend to move to the Middle-East.
According to The Sun, Terry was approached by Al-Shabab around a month ago and has been offered a contract of at least two years. The ex-England international returned to Chelsea as an academy coach in July, having spent the back end of last season as an assistant at Leicester.
Terry joined the Foxes alongside Dean Smith and Craig Shakespeare in April. At the time, Leicester sat 19th, two points off safety with eight matches to go, but the trio could not keep the Foxes in the Premier League as they were relegated on the final day.
But that experience, coupled by his time coaching at Chelsea and Aston Villa, has set Terry on his way to his managerial breakthrough. He is currently working in the academy at Chelsea but the Blues have already said they will not stand in Terry’s way as a mark of respect to the service he gave them.
In the summer transfer window, Al-Shabab completed the signing of Senegal forward, Habib Diallo, who impressed and scored 20 goals in 37 Ligue 1 matches for Strasbourg last term. He became the club’s record signing in the process and is expected to spearhead Terry’s front line. -MIRROR
