'Why? I don't know' - John Terry admits frustration over recent Chelsea coaching role omission
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Chelsea legend John Terry has expressed his frustration after being left out of the caretaking coaching group that led the senior team after Enzo Maresca's departure in January.
When Maresca and Chelsea parted ways on New Year's Day, the club were clearly not fully prepared for it.
They had no replacement in place, and while they might have had candidates in mind, it was always going to take some time to bring in a new head coach.
Then Chelsea Under-21s head coach Calum McFarlane was tasked to lead the first team during the transition period, along with his assistants Andy Ross and James Simmonds, analyst Adam Keep, and set-piece coach Bernardo Cueva.
Terry, who has been at Chelsea in a coaching consultancy role for the Under-21s and Under-18s since 2021, did not make the list.
McFarlane ended up in charge of two games, against Manchester City and Fulham, before he joined Liam Rosenior's backroom staff as an assistant head coach for the first-team.
Terry admitted that he could not understand why he was not involved with the caretaking role since, just like McFarlane and the others, he was part of the Under-21s coaching staff.
"Not annoyed," the Chelsea legend told GOLF LIFE when asked about his omission from the senior team's setup post-Maresca.
"Probably more frustrated because I was certainly part of that Under-21s (coaching) group that went over (to the first team).
"Even if I didn't take the team... obviously, Calum took the team and did really well. Got a result out of the game. I feel like I should have been part of that.
"Listen, people have got to make decisions. I love it when people make decisions, and they go yes or no.
"Clearly, ownership or whoever made those decisions and sporting directors have gone 'no', not to include me for whatever reason. Why? I don't know."
That said, Terry still enjoys his role in helping develop Chelsea talents.
"I'm in the academy, as you know," he added.
"I'm working with the 18s and 21s. Love my role there. It's like a part-time basis."
Gerry Crisandy is a freelance writer who has covered Chelsea for many years. His work has been published on The Chelsea Chronicle and Pride of London. He grew up idolising Michael Ballack and is a firm believer in expected goals.