There are not many players, if there are any at all, that embody Chelsea Football Club quite like John Terry. Having chosen to join the club as a youngster over giants such as Manchester United and Arsenal, the defender would go on to become the heart and soul of the most successful period in Blues history, captaining them to several major titles.
It’s hard to imagine that anyone associated with the club would have any gripe towards Terry given everything that he achieved for them. However, former teammate and good friend Frank Lampard explained why his compatriot was not always in the good books of the kitmen during his playing days, describing him as their worst nightmare.
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Lampard Explained Why Terry Was a Nightmare for Kitmen
The defender allegedly wore multiple pairs of boots on a matchday
Speaking during an appearance on Soccer AM, Terry and Lampard were being hit with quickfire questions, one of which was, ‘Who was the kitman’s worst nightmare?’ Without hesitation, the midfielder pointed towards his former captain before elaborating on what made him so difficult to deal with:
“Without a doubt. We used to travel and he used to take so many boots. He’d have all his superstitions – one for his warm-up, one for the second-half, one for the first-half. It worked though.”
Terry didn’t hide from the accusations, admitting that his habits were quite bad with a wry smile spread across his face.
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Terry On His Superstitions as a Player
The defender was known for having certain rituals before games
While superstitions aren’t a rarity in football, very few had quite the reputation for having them as the Chelsea icon. One that the ex-defender admitted to was that he had to turn off all plug sockets he saw at Chelsea’s training ground. Not because of any health and safety reasons, but because he hated seeing the colour red when the switch was on, due to some of his biggest rivals playing in that colour.
While that may seem strange, it is nothing compared to the most bizarre superstition he revealed in 2016, as per the Daily Mail:
“I am very superstitious and, for me, if we win a game, then I add it on to my next superstition,” Terry explained. “Me and Frank started it a long time ago; in the Chelsea dressing room, we have three urinals and me and Lamps started weeing in one.
“We won the game and, for me, that was it. The next week there was a queue of me, Frank, and Ash (Cole). The next week there were four of us, and the week after there were five. And even now, you have Cesar Azpilicueta and Cesc Fabregas, we are all there in one big queue.”
As odd as it may seem, it’s this obsessive mentality that helped make Terry one of the greatest defenders in the Premier League.
All statistics courtesy of Transfermarkt – accurate as of 21/03/2025.
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