John Terry: Petr Cech worth 15 points a season to Arsenal

The Gunners are widely reported to be close to a deal for the veteran Czech stopper, who appears set to leave the Premier League champions and would prefer to keep his family in London.

Cech - who played an instrumental role in Chelsea's success since joining from Rennes in 2004 - may have found himself now as understudy to Thibaut Courtois at Stamford Bridge, but Terry is in no doubt of just what an important player the 33-year-old can be.

In an interview given to talkSPORT from China, where the former England defender is on a promotional tour, Terry said: "I am sure if he does leave the club, which nobody wants to see, but we understand he wants to play football, he is going to be sorely missed. He will improve whatever side he goes to."

Terry added: "There is obviously talk of Arsenal signing Petr and if they do get Pete, that will strengthen them for sure. He will save them 12 to 15 points a season."

Brian Clough famously said of Peter Shilton that he was worth 18 points a season to Nottingham Forest but Arsenal will probably settle for 15 should they indeed land Cech. A similar increase last season would have given them 90 points, enough to win the league by three points from Chelsea. Of course, that's not really how things work, but Terry's big claim shows just how valued Cech is at Stamford Bridge and how much his departure to a rival will be a wrench.