By Graham Hill
JIMMY Floyd Hasselbaink says he always thought John Terry – not Frank Lampard – would be the first of the Chelsea duo to go into management.
Lampard will take his Derby side to Wembley to face Villa on Monday – with Terry on the opposite bench.
It is Dean Smith who is bossing Villa with Terry as part of his coaching team.
But with Middlesbrough heavily linked with a move for Terry to replace Tony Pulis at the Riverside, the former England and Chelsea skipper’s future has come into sharp focus along with Lampard.
The Rams boss is a clear favourite to take over from Maurizio Sarri at Stamford Bridge if the Italian moves on this summer.
And former Chelsea striker Hasselbaink knows both men well.
He told the us-bookies.com website: “I always saw John Terry going into management a little more than Frank Lampard.
“Don’t get me wrong, Frank was a leader but he was quieter. You could see he was a born leader. You don’t have to be loud to be a leader and he just did the right things, at the right times, in the right way.
“He’s doing well at Derby and JT is in a different role at Villa. They’re both going for it and doing it in their own way. It’s going to be an interesting final between their two sides.”
But Hasselbaink believes that Terry should stay at Villa Park as he will continue to learn under Smith.
The Dutchman added: “I don’t think management is the next step for JT.
“He’s at the right place, with the right manager and the right person as well, who’ll give him room to express himself. It’s only good for his education and development to be where he is now.”
But he says Lampard is an obvious choice for Chelsea if they part company with Sarri.
Hasselbaink added: “If Chelsea get a transfer ban, I can see why they’d go for Frank Lampard. But let’s not forget there’s a manager in place at the moment who hasn’t had a bad year.
“It’s been difficult, but not bad. If they hire Frank, they’ll need to give him time.
“But I can understand why they want to go for him, and he’s with former Chelsea youth coach Jody Morris who knows all of the young players. They’d need to give him time to implement his way.”
Villa Roar 