Chelsea star John Terry is reportedly in the running for the position at the Kassam Stadium as Oxford United enters the second half of the 2025–26 Championship campaign in search of a new manager.
In December of last year, Oxford replaced Des Buckingham with seasoned second-tier manager Gary Rowett after being promoted via the League One play-offs in the 2023–2024 season.
The former manager of Millwall and Birmingham City led the U’s out of the bottom three and relegation spots with a practical style of football, and the season was and would continue to be a success for the team.
This time, United made the rather unexpected decision to fire Rowett last week due to a failure to improve the playing style and results stagnating to the point where Oxford seemed to be inexorably falling back into League One once more.
Craig Short, a former center-back for Everton and Blackburn Rovers, has taken over as temporary manager for the third time, although Terry is a rather unexpected big-name candidate who is in the running for the position permanently.
According to reports, Oxford United is thinking about hiring John Terry.
The Sun reported that John Terry is “one of the names in the frame” to take over as Oxford United’s next manager.
According to the publication, Mick Beale, the former manager of Sunderland and Queens Park Rangers, is another top contender for the Championship position.
Since Terry interviewed for the job back in the late fall of 2023, when Buckingham was appointed after Liam Manning left for Bristol City, it is believed that Oxford’s owners have had Terry on their radar for some time.
Terry, who served as assistant coach at Aston Villa for three seasons from 2018 to 2021, is currently the academy coach at Chelsea and a member of Smith’s coaching team at Leicester City.
Although he managed the “26ers” in the six-a-side “Baller League” competition, it is thought that he is still eager to become a professional manager.
In the midst of John Terry rumors, Oxford United has already seen a post-Gary Rowett comeback.
Gary Rowett is an excellent manager with a wealth of Championship experience, and clubs should and will consider him to keep improving.
Although his departure was a somewhat unexpected choice, it wasn’t a game-changer for the U’s because the ceiling can frequently be a little low and the playing style isn’t the simplest for fans to watch every week.
In reality, Oxford overcame Southampton by two goals to one in the Championship a few days after he left the Kassam, producing one of the season’s best results.
Taylor Harwood-Bellis quickly equalized for Saints after Tyler Goodrham, a player who had lost favor under Rowett, given Oxford the lead in the 23rd minute. But Stan Mills scored the game-winning goal in the 89th minute to earn Oxford a much-needed three points.
After Boxing Day, that outcome ended their four-match losing streak and nearly took them out of the bottom three and the relegation spots.
Oxford’s goal will undoubtedly still be to just stay in the second division, but Terry’s appointment marks a change in their decision-making process in just one year, shifting from Rowett’s dependability to Terry’s risk-taking while staying in a comparable position in the second division.
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