John Terry: 'I didn't want to face Chelsea'

New Aston Villa captain John Terry has explained that he chose to drop down to the Championship in order to avoid facing Chelsea next season.

The 36-year-old brought an end to his 22-year stint at Stamford Bridge in May and was offered the chance to stay in the Premier League with a big-salary move to Bournemouth.

Terry instead opted to drop down a tier, however, penning a one-year deal to join Steve Bruce at the Villans and help them in their fight to return to the top flight.

"First and foremost, when I ruled out playing in the Premier League – I didn't want to play against Chelsea, that didn't feel right at all – I had a couple of games of golf with the manager and we got talking," Terry told talkSPORT.

"Steve is someone I looked up to as a player from his Man United days, and someone I've respected and known throughout the years anyway – we've always had a good relationship. He didn't need to sell it to me at all, because it sells itself – the idea of working with him this season.

"My Chelsea career is behind me. I'm here and have got a new challenge ahead now. So even though I'll always have one eye on Chelsea – it will always be my club without a shadow of a doubt – I'm here and I've got an idea of how I want to see things this year.

"It's going to be tough because there are an awful lot of games throughout the season, but we have a big group of players who are more than capable of going up in this division. If we apply ourselves right, we have a decent chance."

Villa begin their Championship campaign at home to Bruce's former side Hull City on Saturday evening.