Hull City boss Steve Bruce has revealed how he came close to signing Chelsea captain John Terry.

He was close to signing Terry when he was manager at Huddersfield and a £750,000 bid was accepted but the Chelsea and England centre-back in the making turned him down.

Bruce said: "John came out of training with just a T-shirt on and it was freezing cold. I thought, Christ, who's this?

"Anyway when I got the Huddersfield job, I enquired about him and I was very, very close to signing him. We were that close with the fee but John turned me down in the end.

"I remind him now and again how different it could have been and what a great decision it was to stay at Chelsea. But I have always had this respect for John.

"He's a terrific player and for me he's still England's best centre-back.

"Yes, at times he lacks a yard of pace but you very rarely see him exposed. And the one thing which stands alone is that he's a competitor.

"Money and fame, Premier League titles and European titles have never changed him. He's still got the hunger and desire which a lot of young players should look to because he's been there, done it, worn the T-shirt and still has fierce pride about him.

"Sometimes the word great is used too much - but he's a great player. The big dilemma for everybody is where do you replace John Terry."