The former England captain, John Terry features in a preliminary list of January transfer targets prepared by Roberto Mancini, former Manchester City manager, as he looks to stamp his authority on the side he inherited from ex manager Fatih Terim.

Terry’s contract expires at the end of the current season and he will be free to negotiate terms with other clubs in January. Mancini is ready to offer the same wages the reported £160,000-a-week Terry earns at Stamford Bridge as he looks to shore up his central defence.

However, after missing a lot of matches last season due to a combination of injuries and not being favoured by Benitez, the 32-year-old is back as the first-choice central defender under Mourinho. The former Real Madrid manager has opted to choose Terry alongside Gary Cahill as his preferred partnership in central defence with Branislav Ivanovic shifted to right-back.

Although Chelsea’s league form has stuttered as of late, Terry has been in inspired form which is in contrast to last season. Mourinho may not want to lose his captain, who is one of three players along with Frank Lampard and Ashley Cole to be still at the club during Mourinho’s first spell in charge.

However, the London club have a policy of doling out only one-year rolling contracts to players aged above 30 and, both Cole and Lampard signed one-year contracts last summer which are due to expire along with Terry’s contract next June.

Football with Galatasaray may have a bigger appeal for Terry who can offer greater financial security to the centre-back, along with the guarantee of Champions League football since their main rivals Besiktas and Fenerbahce will still be serving a UEFA ban next season.

But, talks of a move away from the club may be a bit premature. According to the Daily Mail, prior to Champions League game against Schalke last month, Terry paid his gratitude to Mourinho and claimed he owed everything to the ‘Special One’.

He said, “My career is where it is because of this man sitting next to me. I’m very proud to be working with him again. When it was announced that Jose was coming back, from the word go I was excited. With the injuries I had last year, I needed to hit the ground running and come back fit. So I came back a week early for pre-season and made sure I was ready.”