Chelsea manager Antonio Conte has revealed that he wanted to keep John Terry at Chelsea.

John Terry left Chelsea in the summer and joined Aston Villa on a one-year contract after spending 22 years at the Blues.

His time with the club was hugely successful as he won five Premier League titles, five FA Cups and the Champions League among other trophies.

He was the leader of the team on and off the pitch, but it had to end at some point and he is now helping Villa challenge for the promotion spots as they currently sit in third place.

Initially, he struggled and that was mirrored by the poor start to the season by the club. However, since the turn of the year, Villa have been in top form with eight wins in ten league games.

Terry has been a key part of that with the 5-0 win against Bristol City being the only match that he has missed in that run and he's played in 25 games in the league this season.

According to the Birmingham Mail, Conte had this to say about his former captain: "For sure for us it was a big loss. I tried to keep him for another season but he wanted to play more."

Conte also had this to say in his pre-match press conference: "He can come when he wants. The door is always open for him, and for the players who wrote the history of this club."

"For me, it’s always a pleasure to see him and have a chat with him. It’s right also for the players to see again their old captain." The high regard that the Italian manager holds Terry in is clear to see with these comments.

The Verdict

It's unlikely that Terry would have been able to do much to help Chelsea catch a fantastic Manchester City side especially with the pace of Premier League matches, which was starting to catch up with him last season.

Chelsea's loss has been Aston Villa's gain, though, because his experience has been pivotal in getting Villa to where they are in the table.

Steve Bruce will be glad that he has such an experienced professional to help lead his team in the tough moments that are apart of a Championship season.