John Terry is Chelsea's captain, leader, legend. In his entire professional career (bar a season-long loan to Nottingham Forest), he has played for the Blues with a pride and determination that has given the fans the ability to forgive any transgressions.
His current contract expires in 2014—with the club seemingly willing to allow fellow legend Frank Lampard to walk away from 12 years of service, for a fee of zilch, there are many fans wondering if Terry will suffer the same fate.
Whether or not he is offered a new deal, there is no doubt that the majority of Terry's career is behind him. He has suffered a series of injuries and, whilst his passion for the club has led to frustration as he has been rested in recent matches, his recovery times from those injuries will only lengthen as he gets older.
When Terry eventually hangs up his boots, Chelsea will be looking for a new leader—they are lucky enough to already have him on the books in the form of David Luiz.
Luiz captained Benfica at the age of 21 and is currently Luiz Felipe Scolari's first choice as captain for the Brazilian national side. He has a natural flair for rallying the team and his character shines through on the pitch. Whilst his enthusiasm has seen him make some fairly memorable errors, it also spurs him on to atone for his mistakes, as well as endearing him to the fans.
Luiz had his own song at Stamford Bridge within weeks of joining Chelsea, a jaunty little number that goes as follows: Oh Da-vid Lu-iz/ You are the love of my life/ Oh David Luiz/ I'd let you sh*g my wife/ Oh David Luiz/ I want curly hair too.
Seeing as the refrain, "We need a song for Ramires," was still being sung two years after his arrival, it is clear that there is something special about Luiz.
Captaining your country is a great achievement, and the fact that Luiz has reached that level at the age of 25 speaks volumes of his leadership qualities. Terry himself has tipped him as a future legend at Chelsea, saying that Luiz "cares about the club" which highlights how he has become such a firm favourite in a short space of time.
His commitment to Chelsea is excellent, both on the pitch, where he has made an average of 2.4 interceptions per game in the Premier League this season, and off it, where he is heavily involved in the club's charitable partnerships. If the Blues can stave off Barcelona and keep Luiz for the long term, he will become the leader of the new generation at Stamford Bridge.
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~Bleacher Report - Chelsea~
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