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Chelsea captain John Terry has extended his contract at the club until the end of the 2015-16 season.

The 34-year-old, whose previous deal ran out at the end of the current campaign, has made over 550 appearances for the Premier League leaders.

Chelsea have a six-point advantage with a game in hand on their rivals and boss Jose Mourinho said: "This new contract is not to say 'thank you very much'.

"It is because John continues to perform. He is a top defender."

Mourinho recently said he could "guarantee" Terry would be offered a new deal, which is in line with Chelsea's policy of offering those over the age of 30 only one-year deals.

Terry has won 13 major honours with the Stamford Bridge club since making his debut in 1998, winning the Champions League, Europa League, three Premier League titles, five FA Cup trophies and three League Cup victories.

He captained Chelsea to two top-flight titles in Mourinho's first spell at Chelsea but was not always selected by interim boss Rafael Benitez during an injury-troubled 2012-13 season.

"I am happy that he completely deserves this new contract after a season where he has already played 40 matches," added Mourinho.

He skippered the Blues to a 2-0 victory over Spurs in the Capital One Cup final earlier this month, but they were knocked out of the Champions League by Paris St-Germain and the FA Cup by League One Bradford.