Article by Alexandru Tomuțiu – Published on Sunday, 09 November 2025, 16:16 / Updated on Sunday, 09 November 2025 16:28
John Terry, 44, was a key figure in José Mourinho's feared Chelsea side of 2004-05, which won the title conceding just 15 goals.
This record has remained unbroken in the two decades since. The closest to surpassing it was even Chelsea the following season, with 22 goals conceded, but Manchester United (2007-2008) and Liverpool (2018-2019) also boasted equally solid defences.
However, by the week, there is growing talk that the record could soon be broken, especially given the efficiency with which David Raya, William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes are keeping opponents away from goal. Mikel Arteta's iron defense has conceded just five goals after 11 matches, although they have already played at difficult grounds such as Old Trafford, Anfield or St James' Park. Terry now fears the Blues' record is in jeopardy.
John Terry: “I have to admit I'm worried”
“I have to admit, I'm a bit worried now,” said the Chelsea legend. “I watch their schedule week by week and see where they might score, but I have to admit they are looking really good at the moment. I still think breaking our record will be too difficult a task for them, but to be honest, I'm a bit nervous.”
Terry believes that in modern football, due to the advent of VAR, it is “much easier” to score from corners and free-kicks.
Eze scored the only goal in Arsenal – Crystal Palace // photo: Guliver/gettyimages
“I think nowadays it's much easier to score from set pieces. You can't block, you can't be really aggressive with the opponents in the box, because there is VAR, the referees are attentive to everything and they can stop the game at any time. So it's much easier for the players to get off the mark,” he explained.
“It doesn't surprise me that a lot of teams, including Arsenal, are so effective. Chelsea are doing very well too, we have our own set-piece specialist coach who is doing an excellent job. Arsenal's is also very publicised, but I think offensively everything has become much simpler. In defence, however, you have to do the exact opposite: you can't be aggressive and you can't block in the box. At the same time, this is a great opportunity for the players and forwards coming up from the defense to get on the scorers' list,” added Terry, according to sportal.hu.
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