Chelsea legend John Terry set to join Al-Shabab as sporting director
Chelsea former superstar and skipper John Terry is set for a sporting director role at Saudi Arabian club Al-Shabab. Terry is now the the latest English legend to work with Saudi Arabian sides.
According to Sportz Zone, (h/t Daily Mail), the former Blues’ skipper rejected an opportunity to become manager of the Saudi club and will instead operate as an adviser and oversee different areas of operations. It is certainly a step up from the by-line role.
The former Chelsea captain will take on the role on a short-term basis. The 42-year-old has been working with Chelsea’s academy setup and as an assistant manager to Dean Smith during the tail-end of Leicester’s
With Saudi clubs, recruitment of top European players and managers has been in full force, and a breakthrough in talks with Terry has resulted in the former player agreeing to the role.
Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Sport president Muhammad Al-Munjam has a great relationship with Terry and has held talks with him to take on the role. Al-Shabab feels the former Chelsea player fits the bill and will provide great insights into the director role, which will help the club turn into an elite side in the Saudi Pro League.
After primarily serving as an assistant manager after hanging up his bots, John Terry’s career will take a different turn with the move to the Middle East. He had the option of accepting the position of head coach and it remains to be seen what his long game is.
Surely, it would have made more sense for him to take up the manager’s role rather than try to move up the table. It is not like Todd Boehly will be keen to bring him to Stamford Bridge at the head of the table. Surely not unless he has proved himself.
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His accomplishments there will speak for themselves, and if he succeeds, he may draw interest from other European clubs who would like to hire him as their sporting director. His understanding of the game is really great, and Al-Shabab will gain a lot from him because he will offer ideas and may establish his own principles. We hope he does well there since he will have a significant impact as the club’s sporting director.