A giant blue banner at Stamford Bridge still proudly reads: “JT, Captain, Leader, Legend”. But is Chelsea’s skipper about to be sent packing by the club he has represented since he was 14 years old? The Life’s a Pitch panel weighs up the fallout from the race row, and concludes that John Terry must be on borrowed time in west London.

“I really find it difficult to believe [Terry] will be offered a new contract when his next deal expires,” says the Sunday Telegraph’s Jason Burt. “This may well be his last season. We’re reaching the end now in terms of his career at Chelsea, as far as I can see, not just because he’s getting older but also because something has to give. It [the Anton Ferdinand race charge] has become too big a story for [Chelsea] and it’s overshadowing everything. They’ve played some fantastic football this season, but no one’s talking about it because they’re talking about John Terry.”

The People’s Dave Kidd believes the Blues skipper has ruined any chance he had of enjoying a post-playing career in west London. “We’re now reaching the endgame for Terry at Chelsea,” he says. “I think he would have gone through most of his career believing he would be a future coach or manager of Chelsea – he almost was manager when Avram Grant was in charge – and suddenly his future looks pretty bleak. As a manager you have to play an ambassadorial role, and I don’t see how Terry can, given the past 12 months.”

While he played in this week’s Champions League defeat against Shakhtar Donetsk, Terry is suspended for Sunday’s pivotal home game against Manchester United. This provides David Luiz and Gary Cahill with another opportunity to prove to Roberto Di Matteo that they can be a successful partnership – and the People’s Tom Hopkinson is confident the England defender is up to the task. “Cahill’s certainly developing into a Chelsea footballer and a top-four player,” he says. “The goal he scored at Spurs last weekend was absolutely fantastic.”

The panel also discusses Chelsea’s magnificent forward play this season, and how the introduction of Radamel Falcao could boost their title hopes.

Watch the full video discussion by clicking on the play button in the image above.

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Chelsea v Man Utd, 3.30pm, 28 October, Sky Sports 1
Chelsea v Man Utd, 7.30pm, 31 October, Sky Sports 2

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