NOT SINCE 1977 have Chelsea suffered such an opening day defeat, and it is exactly 50 years since the club conceded four in their first league game (August 9, 1969 at Liverpool). Not the best of overtures for Frank Lampard on his debut Premier League fixture as manager of Chelsea. Already this campaign has the look of a transition for the Blues. Chelsea, to their … Continue reading Oh dear, Chelsea
CHELSEA fans will never forget Peter Osgood and Ian Hutchinson, they were, after all, two of the key figures in the club’s unforgettable 1969-70 FA Cup triumph. These two players helped define an era, a swaggering Chelsea team that was fashionable, exciting, hard as nails at times and confident to the point of arrogance. But it is not always appreciated that their time together – … Continue reading Great Partnerships: Osgood and Hutchinson – short-lived but sensational
REMEMBER when Chelsea went left-field and hired André Villas-Boas, the 35 year-old Porto head coach? It was meant to be bold, innovative and – with absence making the heart grow fonder for the man who brought two league titles to the club – a Mourinho-lite appointment. It all turned sour and inexperience, over-expectation and tactical confusion led to AVB out of work in mid-February 2012. … Continue reading With Lampard, it may be different
REMEMBER when Chelsea went left-field and hired André Villas-Boas, the 35 year-old Porto head coach? It was meant to be bold, innovative and – with absence making the heart grow fonder for the man who brought two league titles to the club – a Mourinho-lite appointment. It all turned sour and inexperience, over-expectation and tactical confusion led to AVB out of work in mid-February 2012. … Continue reading Chelsea and Lampard – where’s the biggest risk?
CHELSEA may be in the process of being treated in the same way they have dealt with their long stream of managers in the Abramovich era. In other words, Maurizio Sarri has told the club he wants to leave – just one year into his contract. Sarri, of course, ended the season with Champions League qualification and a trophy – his first (and probably only) … Continue reading The Grey Neutral: Who can truly blame Sarri?
IF Arsenal or Chelsea were not up against a local rival, Baku and the Europa League might not mean as much as it probably does to the fans of both clubs – those that decide to make the journey to Azerbaijan. The fact that the clubs have returned tickets to UEFA says a lot about the appeal of Baku as the stage for a major … Continue reading UEFA Europa League: Together to Baku – almost
THIRTY years ago, it would be nigh on impossible for one country to provide all the European finalists. The only way it could have happened was if the holders of the European Cup and European Cup-Winners’ Cup were English and the qualifying clubs from England were not the holders. In 1971-72, we had a UEFA Cup final between Tottenham and Wolves – a competition where … Continue reading Commentary Box: Into perspective – England’s quartet
LONDON’s top clubs had a mixed start to the 1971-72 season. Not everyone was surprised, however, for despite the capital city scooping all the domestic prizes and a European trophy, the football establishment still looked to the north of England as the hub of the game in the early 1970s. “I wonder sometimes if the London lads are as dedicated,” commented Huddersfield Town manager Ian … Continue reading 72 Classic: London’s lost cup
HOPEFULLY, we are a long way from making drastic and knee-jerk decisions around the fear of pitch invasions becoming a new trend in British football. Anyone who remembers the days of fences, threats of electrification, the feeling of being penned-in like cattle and the “us and them” environment where policemen stared into the eyes of the underclass will be hoping the current spate of incursions … Continue reading Commentary Box: The new hooliganism
GEORGE HARRISON once sang, “All things must pass”, a reminder that no matter how presumptious the human condition can be, nothing lasts forever. In the context of football, both Liverpool and Manchester United now realise that the regimes they created, supposedly rock solid and built to endure, eventually succumbed to the changing times and new pretenders. We can never assume that success is a given … Continue reading Chelsea may be at the end of the Roman road
AMID talk in recent months that Russian owner Roman Abramovich may be tiring of project Chelsea, and indeed the UK, the club he bought in 2003 has posted record revenues for the year ended June 30, 2018. For the first time in the club’s history, revenues went above £ 400 million to £ 443 million. Furthermore, the club posted a profit for only the fourth … Continue reading Chelsea create a new revenue record – money for the window
CHELSEA fans will never forget Peter Osgood and Ian Hutchinson, they were, after all, two of the key figures in the club’s unforgettable 1969-70 FA Cup triumph. These two players helped define an era, a swaggering Chelsea team that was fashionable, exciting, hard as nails at times and confident to the point of arrogance. But it is not always appreciated that their time together – … Continue reading Great Partnerships: Osgood and Hutchinson – short-lived but sensational
