Chelsea: Didier Drogba backs decision to hand captain John Terry new contract

Chelsea striker Didier Drogba has backed the club's decision to hand a new contract to captain John Terry.

Terry, who fell out of favour during the unpopular reign of former interim manager Rafael Benitez, has been revitalised since Jose Mourinho returned for his second spell in charge at Stamford Bridge in 2013.

Following Vincent Kompany's fall from grace, the former England stalwart has been arguably the best centre-back in the country and his wealth of experience continues to prove crucial as Chelsea seek to cap off a fine campaign by securing their first Premier League title for five years.

Terry's reward for such consistent form was a new one-year deal in line with the club's policy of only offering rolling extensions to players over 30, and Drogba was delighted to see his teammate pen fresh terms.

"It's logical when you see the way he's performed this year and the way the manager is happy with him," the Ivorian was quoted as saying by the London Evening Standard.

"You can see he has the desire to carry on playing and being the best defender. It's deserved and I'm really happy for him."

As for Drogba, his own Chelsea contract is due to expire at the end of the season and it is unclear at this stage if he will join Terry in committing his future for a further 12 months or if intends to move elsewhere.

The possibility of a duel coaching role was mooted when he sealed his second switch to the west London club in summer 2014 but it remains to be seen if the 37-year-old is ready to move on to the next phase of his successful career.

Chelsea return to action following the international break with a home fixture against Stoke City on 4 April.

Diego Costa is likely to miss out with a recurring hamstring injury that prevented him from representing Spain earlier in March and the absence of the Premier League's joint-top scorer will give one of Drogba or Loic Remy the chance to prove themselves worthy of a starting berth.

Mourinho's side are six points clear of second-place Manchester City and boast the added advantage of a game in hand over their nearest title rivals heading into the final stretch.