LONDON -- John Terry will stay at Chelsea for the rest of the season despite reports this week that Bournemouth had made a shock enquiry to take him on loan, head coach Antonio Conte has confirmed.
Terry, 36, was sent off during Sunday's 4-1 win over Peterborough in the FA Cup third round, his first Chelsea appearance since November after battling strained ankle ligaments and a glute muscle injury picked up in training at Cobham.
Chelsea thrived in Terry's absence, recording 13 Premier League wins in a row and 10 clean sheets without their captain to surge five points clear of nearest challengers Liverpool at the top of the table, and leading to speculation that he could seek first-team football elsewhere.
But Conte has repeatedly insisted that Terry remains a vital influence off the pitch at Chelsea, and says his captain will be going nowhere in January.
"I didn't know about Bournemouth interest for John," Conte said of Terry. "John is an important player for me, if he plays or he doesn't play, because he's a really important man in the changing room. This squad needs him.
"John, I repeat, is an important player for this team, for this squad, for me. His work on the pitch, his work in the changing room outside is fantastic. He's a great player, but also a great man and for me it's fantastic to have a person as him to help me in my first season in Chelsea.
"For this reason, I repeat, John stays with us, is our player, is in my squad. And when I see the situation and I want and he deserves to play, he'll play. He remains a really important player for me."
Terry's contract runs out next summer and it remains unclear whether he will be offered an extension. Back in December sources denied to ESPN FC that Chelsea had met with their captain to discuss his future beyond this season.
Bournemouth manager Eddie Howe also said there has been no move to bring in the Chelsea defender.
While Howe is an admirer of the 36-year-old former England skipper, and has seen his own defensive options depleted after Chelsea recalled Nathan Ake early from a season-long loan, he says no deal is currently under consideration.
"There have been no negotiations with Chelsea at all," Howe said at a news conference ahead of Saturday's Premier League trip to Hull. "I admire John Terry greatly as a footballer. He was one of my favourite central defenders.
"When I looked at people when I was playing to try and emulate and get close to, he was one that I followed, but there has been no discussions and no meeting, nothing."
Howe admits the loss of Ake is a blow, with the 21-year-old Dutchman having started to grow into his role within the Bournemouth squad.
"Nathan's exit is disappointing because he had done so well, was producing consistent performances and improving with every game," Howe said. "To lose him after that work is disappointing, but Chelsea have every right to do that [recall].
"We were thankful to Chelsea for lending him to us in the first place."
Howe has seen his defensive options depleted further with the suspension of Simon Francis, who was shown a red card in the 3-3 draw against Arsenal. The Bournemouth boss, though, is not about to make any panic buys in the January sales.
"There is no guarantee we will do anything in that position. What we are doing at the moment is assessing our options and seeing which decision we make," he said. "We have some good players here who can fill that void, so it will be up to them, hopefully in the next game, to show I don't need to sign anyone."
Information from the Press Association was used in this report.