'For 22 years this club has been my life' - John Terry writes open letter to Chelsea fans

He pays tribute to the supporters, chairman Roman Abramovich, the players and his family as he talks through ‘the toughest decision of his life’.

The 36-year-old is yet to announce where he will play next season but insisted he will be returning to the West London club in the future 'in some capacity'.

“It’s with overwhelming emotion that earlier this week the club and I announced this will be my last season as a Chelsea player”, the statement begins.

“This has been the toughest decision of my life for me and my family​, but I always envisaged leaving on the right terms, in the right way and at the right time - and that is now.

“I feel I still have regular football in me but understand that opportunities here at Chelsea will be limited, it is therefore time for a new challenge.”

Terry then thanks Abramovich for turning the Blues into one of the most successful teams in the world and taking them into a new era.

He adds: “For 22 years this club has been my life, it has given me the platform to compete against the best, break record after record, win trophy after trophy​,​ and as we won more it only increased my desire to work harder and demand more from myself and the team.

“With this obsession I’ve been able to become Chelsea’s most successful captain and I’m immensely proud to be mentioned in the same company as Ron Harris, Peter Bonetti, Frank Lampard, John Hollins and many other greats as one of the highest appearance-makers for the club.”

The former England captain then turns his attention to the current season, with Chelsea in touching distance of the Premier League title, but handed a shock over the weekend with a 2-0 defeat to Manchester United leaving them just four points ahead of Tottenham.

“I want to stress that the journey is not yet over. There is a long way to go and we are committed to ending this campaign on a high. I am fully focused on helping the team and manager in every way I can from now until the end of the season.”