Aston Villa Manager Dean Smith 'Flattered' by John Terry's Desire to Work Under Him

16 October 2018 10:32

​Aston Villa's new head coach, Dean Smith, has expressed his elation that John Terry decided to work under him as his first job in professional management. 

Having reached the Championship play-off final against Fulham last season, Steve Bruce's Villa started this campaign in disappointing fashion. After 12 games, the Villans sit in 15th position with just three wins to their name.

In Aston Villa's last game before the international break, they allowed Preston, who sat at the bottom of the Championship table at the time, to come back from 3-1 down to secure a 3-3 draw. This was the final straw for the Villa hierarchy, and Bruce was sacked a day later. 

Bristol City v Aston Villa - Sky Bet Championship

The Midlands team chose Brentford's Dean Smith to replace Bruce, and announced that Chelsea legend, John Terry, would become Smith's assistant manager. 

On the prospect of working with Terry, the BBC reports that Smith said: "I can tap in to John's knowledge base, from the coaches he has played under. It is a team that will work very well together.

"John knows the football club and he is starting now his fledgling coaching career."


Aston Villa's new manager explained that he feels honoured that Terry, with his legendary status in football, decided to work for him, adding: "To be honest, I was quite flattered that he wanted to work under us and develop as a coach under me as well. I'm really pleased that he has chosen to do that.

"I want people who are there to challenge me, who want to get better and improve."

On the opportunity to work with a club with as much history as Aston Villa, Smith buzzed: "It's a great job. As a kid, I wanted to play for Aston Villa, but I was never good enough and ended up in the lower leagues.

"The next best thing, you become a coach - what better than to be the head coach of the football team you supported?"

Aston Villa Unveil New Management Team

Villa's chief executive, Christian Purslow, believes that the combination of Terry and Smith will prove to be 'an excellent fit' for the club. 

The chief executive chipped in: "He [Terry] is going to help Dean very much in the early days to hit the ground running.


"John has familiarised himself with all aspects of the club, beyond simply the normal duties that a professional footballer would focus on."

Purslow also expressed his confidence that Terry's vastly decorated playing career will help him learn from Dean Smith. 

He explained: "I think it's tremendous that a former great footballer has taken a decision now to dedicate himself to trying to become a leading coach, and this is the first step on that long journey.

"To have somebody with his background as a player make those first steps in our great club, learning from a hugely experienced coach like Dean, felt to us like an excellent fit."

Smith's first game as Aston Villa manager will be a home fixture against Swansea City, who sit four places above Villa. However, a victory for the Villans would see them leapfrog over the Welsh side and begin the process of climbing towards the positions that lead to promotion.

Source: 90min