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Chelsea have three legendary players whose contracts are set to expire this summer, and The Telegraph are reporting that their fates are now in Jose Mourinho's hands. According to the paper, the manager will have the final say on whether or not John Terry, Ashley Cole, or Frank Lampard remain with Chelsea for the 2014/15 season.
While the Blues have generally left the decisions on this sort of thing to Michael Emenalo, the fact the Mourinho appears to have some actual job security seems to have the manager in a unique position. Even if this report is based on nothing, it would makes sense that Mourinho will be heavily involved in the decisions about the futures of the trio.
Terry would seem to be an easy choice to extend, assuming he's willing to take a one or two year deal at at smaller wage than he's currently on. He's been our best defender for the majority of this season, and letting him walk would seemingly create a immediate vacancy we'd be better off without.
Lampard and Cole are a bit less certain, as both have seen quite a bit of time this season while showing signs of age. Cole has seemingly become second choice to Cesar Azpilicueta, and it's hard to imagine Lampard seeing as many minutes as he has after the acquisition of Nemanja Matic is completed.
Regardless, leaving the decision to a popular manager like Mourinho would probably make the eventual departures of three such vital figures to our recent history easier to take. The club seems to be handling this situation better than they did a year ago, when Interim was left talking about a situation he had no input into on a regular basis.
