Chelsea legend Gianfranco Zola says John Terry is attracting a lot of interest from Qatar

Ever since John Terry accidentally let slip that he would not be renewing his contract and retiring at Chelsea, the defender has been linked with a host of clubs with destinations ranging from the MLS, China and even clubs across Europe.

However, Qatar has also entered the fray now with Chelsea legend Gianfranco Zola claiming that many clubs in the region are interested in signing the English defender.

"When we talk about John Terry, we are talking about a big player, big name and I believe a player of this stature is not of interest only for the team, but also for the whole league," said Zola at a Doha press conference.

Zola who is the manager of Qatari team Al- Arabi went on to say:

"I believe the Qatari league is a league that wants to grow bigger so I believe there might be interest not only from Al-Arabi but there might be interest from all the Qatari league."

"He's been linked not only to Qatar, he's been linked also to the MLS, to China."

"It's more difficult for any league if there is a league like China which has invested so much money. It will be more competition for Qatar, for leagues in Europe."

It seems like even the Qataris have difficulty in matching the spending power of the Chinese clubs.

Chelsea insist John Terry contract renewal is still possible

The club have indicated with a statement that it is not a certainty that their captain will leave Chelsea in the summer. A spokesman from the club had this to say about the situation:

“John requested a meeting with the club the week before last, in that meeting he asked about the possibility of an extension to his existing contract. John was advised that while no new deal was on the table, that situation could change in the coming months.”

“The club has the utmost respect for John and everything he has helped us achieve to date. He is a fantastic servant of Chelsea and a superb captain and, as such, the club will keep the channels of dialogue open.”

Chelsea fans will be hoping against hope that John Terry will stay at Stamford Bridge for another season.