John Terry might not be done quite yet.
Terry, 37, remains a free agent after his time with Aston Villa came to an end in the summer and the legendary defender is reportedly considering an offer to move to Portugal.
Sporting Lisbon are apparently close to finalising a move for the former Chelsea centre-half and while Terry is considering the switch, the deal seemingly hinges on the outcome of the club’s upcoming presidential election.
Pedro Madeira Rodrigues is one of six candidates in the running for the position and should Rodrigues come out on top of the vote, which will take place this weekend, he will join forces with Jose Maria Ricciardi as the figureheads of the Primeira Liga club.
Rodrigues has vowed to bring Terry to the Estádio José Alvalade if successful in the election.
Having missed out on both Claudio Marchisio and Yaya Toure, Rodrigues has identified Terry as the “great champion” he wants to lead the team.
“I’m very close to presenting players for Sporting already,” Rodrigues told Sporting TV, as translated by the Mirror. “If I wanted to, I could present three players today. I just won’t announce them because I can’t go beyond certain limits.
“I’m negotiating by the penny. They are foreigners. A left-back, a striker and a great champion – all players who have no contract.
“I can say one because I’ve been caught up with him. It’s John Terry, a great champion, a player who does not come to win games, but comes to win games in training. I cannot pay him what he’s used to, but I think he’s very close to being our player.
“Unfortunately we lost Marchisio, he would be Sporting’s player if I was president last week. On Monday we lost one to Olympiacos.”
Terry has also been linked with a return to Villa as manager Steve Bruce hopes to stop the rot at the club which has just suffered the heaviest defeat since their relegation from the Premier League.
