Chelsea FC … The Best of E-Book

Rob Mason

• Herausgeber: G2 Rights
• Kategorie: Lebensstil
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2019

Beschreibung

The legendary players, managers, matches and moments that have shaped the history of one of the biggest football clubs in the world are listed in a fascinating A to Z format. From Azpilicueta to Zola, from Abramovich to Wilkins, each 'legend' has their own entry and pictures that have been updated for the 2019/20 season. The fully illustrated book also contains facts and figures of all the club's league positions, greatest goal scorers, players of the year, most appearances, famous supporters and a Greatest Ever XI as chosen by the fans. The book takes in the start of the current season in which Lampard won the Premier League Manager of the Month Award in October; and Abraham and Mount played for England.

Leseprobe

Contents

A

Abramovich, Ancelotti, Armstrong, Azpilicueta

B

Ballack, Bates, Bentley, Blunstone, Bonetti, Bumstead

C

Cahill, Canoville, Carvalho, Cech, Centenary 1905-2005, Chelsea Ladies, Clarke, Cole, Cole, Conte, Cooke, Costa, Courtois, Cudicini, Cult Heroes

D

Desailly, Di Matteo, Dixon, Docherty, Drogba

E

Essien, Europe

F

Fabregas. Famous Fans, Ferreira, Flo

G

Guus, Greatest XI, Greaves, Gudjohnsen, Gullit

H

Harding, Harris, Hasselbaink, Hazard, Hollins, Hudson, Hutchinson

I

Ivanovic

K

Kante

L

Lampard, League Positions, Le Bouef, Le Saux, Luiz

M

Makelele, Mata, Matic, McCreadie, Mikel, Mourinho

N

Nevin

O

Osgood

P

Pates, Pedro, Pitch Owners, Player of the Year, Poyet

Q

Quickest

R

Ramires. Ranieri, Robben

S

Sexton, Sinclair, Speedie, Stamford Bridge

T

Tambling, Terry, The Trophy Cabinet, Three Hundred Club, Torres

U

Under-rated

V

Vialli

W

Walker, Webb, Wilkins, Willian, Wise,

X

X-tra time

Y

Youth Team

Z

Zola

Abramovich

Roman Abramovich took control of Chelsea in 2003 and has effectively bank rolled their place in the top tier of English and European football since then winning innumerable prizes in the process.

Born in Saratov, Russia on 24 October 1966 and orphaned at the age of four, Abramovich was brought up by his paternal uncle before being drafted into the Soviet Army.

The collapse of communism and the rapid switch to a free economy enabled Abramovich to acquire vast wealth very quickly as he bought up cheaply shares in the newly-privatised industries and he was soon the major shareholder in Sibneft, the oil company, and RusAl, the aluminum company.

Abramovich meets the fans in 2003

Roman’s Legionnaires

By 2015 his wealth was estimated at $9 billion (Forbes), making him the one of the richest Russians in the world.

Although he was known to have looked at a number of football clubs in Europe and was believed to have been a fan of CSKA in Moscow, he invested an initial £150 million to buy the controlling interest in Chelsea in 2003. Almost unlimitless funds have been made available since then in order that the club can lure the world’s top players to Stamford Bridge, together with a charismatic manager to look after the team. Following accusations that his involvement with Chelsea was unpatriotic, he agreed a £30 million sponsorship deal with CSKA Moscow and Sibneft, thus avoiding UEFA regulations that prevent one person owning more than one club.

Under his patronage Chelsea has won five Premiership titles; five FA Cups; three League Cups; two Europa League Cups and, his ultimate goal, the Champions League Final in 2012.

Chelsea Chairman, Roman Abramovich watching his team play Leicester In August 2014

Ancelotti

Carlo Ancelotti was appointed manager of Chelsea in the summer of 2009 and in his first season won both the Premier League and the FA Cup - the club’s first ever domestic double.

He succeeded temporary replacement Guus Hiddink and became the club’s fifth manager in 21 months, following Jose Mourinho, Avram Grant, Luiz Felipe Scolari and the hugely popular Hiddink. The third Chelsea manager hailing from Italy - after Gianluca Vialli and Claudio Ranieri - he continued with his midas touch at the Bridge.

As a player, “Carletto”, as he was nicknamed, appeared 26 times for Italy and participated in the 1986 and 1990 World Cups. A creative midfielder, he started his club career in 1976 with Parma and in 1979 was transferred to AS Roma, where as captain he won the Italian Championship in 1983 and the Italian Cup four times.

From 1987 until 1992 he played for AC Milan and was part of the legendary squad that included the likes of Paolo Maldini and Marco van Basten and won consecutive European Cups in 1989 and 1990.

Ancelotti’s first coaching jobs were with Reggiana, Parma and Juventus (where he finished runner-up twice in Serie A) before joining Milan in 2001 where he became one of only six coaches to win the Champions League as both a player and a manager. After his shock departure at Chelsea in 2011(he was greatly loved by fans and players alike) he managed Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid where he helped them secure their 10th Champions League Final in 2014 before being sacked at the end of the 2015 season.

Carlo Ancelotti celebrating a first League and Cup Double with John Terry

Armstrong

Ken Armstrong was spotted whilst playing war-time football with Bradford Rovers and the army before he was signed up by Chelsea in December 1946.

Born in Bradford on 3 June 1924, he made his debut in August 1947 and would go on to make a then record number of appearances for the club, amassing 362 League appearances and 39 appearances in the FA Cup before moving on in 1956.

A member of the side that won the League title for the first time in 1954-55, Armstrong also won one cap for England, a figure that might have been considerably higher had he not been susceptible to injuries.

As it was this solid and reliable right half brought his English career to a halt in 1956 and emigrated to New Zealand, turning out for the likes of Easter Union, New Shore United and Gisborne and winning 13 caps for his adopted country before going into coaching.

He died in New Zealand on 13 June 1984 and his ashes were fittingly scattered at Stamford Bridge.

Ken Armstrong shows off his strong arms

Azpilicueta

Affectiontaley known as ‘Dave’ by the fans who can’t pronounce his name, there were a few raised eyebrows when Cesar Azpilicueta replaced Ashley Cole at left back as he had been signed from Marseille in August 2012 as a right-back!

But his defensive skills at snuffling opposition wingers meant that Jose Mourinho wanted him in the team even out of position: “Azpilicueta is the kind of player I like a lot. I think a team with eleven Azpilicuetas would probably win the competition (Champions League) because football is not just about pure talent”.

His sterling performances for the Blues earned a first call-up to the full Spanish national team in early 2013, and he ended his second season at the club by winning the Chelsea Players’ Player of the Year award. He made his 250th Chelsea appearance in the away game at West Ham United in December 2017 and following the departure of Gary Cahill in the summer of 2019, he became the club captain.

Azpilicueta playing for Chelsea in the 1-0 win against Everton in 2015

Ballack

One of the big name recruits at the start of the Abramovich era was East-German born Michael Ballack who joined the club in May 2006 on a Bosman free transfer.

He began his professional career with Chemnitzer FC and made his reputation with 1FC Kaiserslautern, earning the first of his near 100 caps for Germany in April 1996 and being one of the key players who guided the side to the final of the World Cup in 2002, although he had to sit out the final owing to suspension.

Ballack joined Bayer Leverkusen shortly after his international debut, costing the club 4.8million Euros, and developed into one of the best attacking midfield players in the world, taking Bayer Leverkusen from mid-table obscurity to challenging for honours – in 2001-02 they finished second in the Bundesliga and runners-up in both the German Cup and UEFA Champions League, although Michael received some compensation by being named German Player of the Year.

That year he joined Bayern Munich for 12.9million Euros and started to collect winners medals, winning the Bundesliga at the end of his first season. He also retained his Player of the Year award and, after a trying 2003-04 season, was back in top form the following term and collected the accolade for a third time – only Franz Beckenbauer with four has won the honour more times.

Ballack signs for Chelsea, May 2006

In four seasons at Bayern Munich, he helped the club win three domestic Doubles but his star has failed to shine so brightly at Chelsea. He did help the team win the FA Cup and League Cup in his first season; reach the 2008 Champions League Final; and achieve the League and Cup Double in 2009-10. A technically gifted player who finally won the favour of the fans, he returned to Bayer Leverkusen after some 166 games for the Blues in which he scored 25 goals.

Ballack playing for Chelsea in his typical leisurely fashion in 2008

Bates

No football club chairman before or since has aroused quite as much argument both for and against as Ken Bates.

Born in London on 4 December 1931, Ken made his fortune from the ready-mix concrete business and dairy farming before he found an interest in football, briefly serving Oldham as chairman during the 1960s and buying a controlling interest in Wigan in 1981.

The following year he bought Chelsea for £1, inheriting substantial debts, a club languishing in the Second Division and a team clearly not good enough to get them out of trouble. Over the course of the next 20 years Ken rescued the club from bankruptcy, saw off the threat of Marler Estates and turned the ground into one of the best in the country. Along the way he managed to upset all and sundry, failing in an application to electrify the fence surrounding the pitch in order to deter hooligans, welcoming investors such as Matthew Harding into the club and then effectively freezing him out and doing his utmost to deter those he saw as freeloaders. Aided by massive spending both on and off the pitch Chelsea’s fortunes were turned around, with the club enjoying sustained success towards the end of the 1990s and emerging at the start of the new century as a major threat to the previous duopoly of Arsenal and Manchester United. By 2003 debts had spiralled back up to £80 million and Ken accepted an offer of £140 million for his controlling interest from Roman Abramovich, although he remained as chairman until March 2004.

Ken Bates generously applauds his team

Later the same month he announced his intention of investing in Sheffield Wednesday but this deal fell through and in January 2005 he emerged as the new owner of Leeds United. He sold his interest in the club in 2012 and now resides in semi-retirement in Monaco. He may have saved Chelsea from possible extinction but he was involved in too many clubs to win the fans’ undying affection.

Bates shows Vialli where the exit is, for future reference!

Bentley

Centre-forward Roy Bentley - one of the last survivors of the title-winning team of 1955 - is up there with the greatest names in Chelsea’s long and illustrious history.

He began his career with Bristol Rovers in 1937 but spent only one year on their books before switching across the city to join rivals Bristol City!

Like many players of his era his best years were undoubtedly lost to the Second World War, but at the end of hostilities he moved north to join Newcastle United in June 1946. He was to make 48 League appearances for the Magpies, scoring 22 goals.

In January 1948 Chelsea paid £11,000 to bring him south and, given that he went on to score 149 goals in 366 appearances in league and cup, it must rank as one of the best deals in the club’s history. A member of the League championship winning side in 1954-55, Bentley also netted in the following season’s Charity Shield.

His Chelsea career came to an end in August 1956 and once again he moved across a city, this time signing for Fulham. The transfer came to £8,500, meaning Chelsea had paid just £2,500 for eight years use out of Bentley, during which he was top scorer in every season.

He later moved into management, taking charge at Reading and Swansea Town. Bentley also proved his worth on the international scene, netting seven goals for England in just a dozen appearances. Following the death of Tom Finney in February 2014, Bentley became the only surviving player from England’s 1950 World Cup squad.

Captain Roy Bentley leads out his Championship-winning team

Blunstone

Frank Blunstone was the teenage prodigy of his day. Born in Crewe on 17 October 1934, he joined his local side, Crewe Alexandra straight from school and was thrown almost immediately into the first team in January 1952.

During the course of just 48 appearances for the Railwaymen he was noted as one of the brightest left wing talents in the lower leagues and numerous clubs sent scouts to have him watched.

In March 1953 he was signed by Chelsea for £7,000 and he soon proved that the step up a grade did not phase him, going on to win the first of his five England caps in November 1954 and helping Chelsea win the League championship at the end of the 1954-55 season.

He remained at Stamford Bridge for the rest of his career, finally retiring in June 1964 having helped the club restore their place in the top flight in 1962-63.

In nearly 350 first team appearances for Chelsea he scored over 50 goals, an adequate return for a winger, but it was the goals he created for the likes of Roy Bentley and then Jimmy Greaves that ensured his place in Chelsea folklore.

Frank Blunstone pictured during training at Stamford Bridge in the 1950s

Bonetti

Peter “The Cat” Bonetti is truly one of the greats from Chelsea’s past.

After a brief spell at Reading as a youngster, Bonetti joined Chelsea in April 1959 after his Swiss mother wrote to the club asking for a trial for ‘my boy, who might one day make you a useful goalkeeper.’ Mrs Bonetti was a master of understatement, for during the course of near on 20 years, Peter made 600 League appearances and 129 appearances in various cup competitions for the Blues keeping more than 200 clean sheets.

Nicknamed The Cat because of his cat-like agility in the penalty area, Bonetti represented England at Under 23 level before collecting his first full cap against Denmark in 1966 and was a member of the squad for the World Cup that year. Unfortunately, the continued good form of Gordon Banks prevented Bonetti from winning more than seven caps for his country, although he did get to represent England in the 1970 World Cup in the quarter-final when Banks had been taken ill with food poisoning. He was largely blamed for their shock defeat to West Germany after they had been leading by two goals although arguably he was only culpable for one of the three goals he let in.

A member of the team that won the FA Cup and European Cup Winners’ Cup in successive seasons in the 1970s, and after a brief spell playing in the NASL with St Louis Stars, he finished his career back at Stamford Bridge in 1978. He returned once more to the Bridge as part of the coaching team and now in his mid-70s still comes back for the occasional guest appearance.

Peter Bonetti – The Cat

Bonetti pictured in 1976

Bumstead

London-born John Bumstead spent his entire playing career in the capital. A Rotherhithe boy, he was fist spotted playing school football in South London before being Invited along to both Queens Park Rangers and Crystal Palace to train. Coveted by both clubs, he decided to join a superior team as an apprentice with Chelsea in November 1976 before joining the professional ranks.

He made his League debut for the club against Leeds United in November 1978 and over the course of nearly 15 years, injuries notwithstanding, would go on to make 339 League appearances and a further 70 in major cup competitions. A midfield creator of goals and chances for others rather than a goalscorer himself, Bumstead still managed to net 38 goals during his Stamford Bridge career.

A member of the side that won the Second Division championship in 1984 and 1989, he was often the unsung hero and highly regarded by his fellow professionals and teammates. In July 1991 he was transferred to Charlton Athletic and went on to make 56 appearances for the club before his retirement.

John Bumstead in 1983