Terry: New home right move for Blues

Blues' captain Terry last night urged supporters to back the board's bid to repurchase the freehold of Stamford Bridge.

The England defender spoke out amid what appeared to be growing opposition to owner Roman Abramovich's attempt to buy the land the club sold to Chelsea Pitch Owners (CPO) -- who are made up mostly of fans -- in the 1990s.

That plan has been seen as a precursor to a move to a new 60,000-seater stadium, a move Terry, who is also CPO president, believes would be in the Blues' best interests.

He said: "For us to have a bigger pitch would be a big benefit.

"We have suffered from this at the Bridge in the last few years when clubs come and 'park the bus', as we often say. We find it a little difficult to break them down at times. With a bigger stadium and bigger pitch, with the quality we have in the squad and the quality we are aiming to have, that would certainly serve us well.

"Looking at Arsenal and Manchester United, they are getting a lot more income due to their capacity than us, without an owner dipping into his own pocket, like Roman has done consistently."

Chelsea have responded to many supporters' concerns with a Q&A on their website, while chairman Bruce Buck was expected to meet again with fan representatives today.

Several supporters groups have formed a campaign called "Say No CPO", and plan to hand out 10,000 leaflets before Saturday's Premier League game with Everton urging a no vote at the October 27 extraordinary general meeting which will see CPO determine their fate.

The club need 75pc of those attending or voting by proxy to agree to sell the land beneath Stamford Bridge to the club.