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Chelsea Football Club
Club History & Facts:
Chelsea Fc were formed in 1905 in south-west London, they are based in a rather affluent area of inner London and their stadium is Stamford Bridge. The Ground holds a maximum of 42,000 spectators and is on the Fulham Road, they were initially nicknamed the pensioners, a name which has been scrapped in recent years and they are most frequently referred to as the blues. Despite being a major European force now,. Chelsea do not boast the history of Liverpool or Manchester United. Their first major trophy win came when they won the 1954 - 55 first division, but this did not propel the blues to any kind of long term success, 16 years later they beat Leed sUnited 2-1 in the fa cup final replay. That team featured the legendary Peter Osgood one of the club's all time greats.
The late 1970's and 80's were a difficult time for the west Londoners, they were in and out of the top division and were not held in the same regard as they wer in the 50's and 60's. They stayed in the top division in the 1990's, but remained inconsistent throughout that time. Dutchman Rudd Gullit lead Chelsea to their first major trophy in 26 years when they recorded a 1-0 win against Middlesbrough at Wembley courtesy of a wonder strike from the Italian Roberto Di Matteo, they won the same trophy 3 yeras later under Gianluca Vialli when they disposed of Aston Villa. They were gradually becoming a top 4 side with appearances in the Champions League and major progression since their plight in the 1980's.
When Chairman Ken Bates sold the club to Russian Billionaire Roman Abramovich it changed the face of English Football, suddenly money was no object for the blues and they began to buy their way to the top. When Jose Mourinho was put in place as head coach in 2004 they became a real force to be reckoned with. The manager bought in the likes of Didier Drogba, Ricardo Carvalho and Petr Cech and they won their first league title in exactly 50 years it was also Chelsea's centenary year. Mourinho also improved the likes of Captain John Terry and midfielder Frank Lampard as they became figurative in Chelsea's dominance.
They won back to back Premierships before the dubious departure of Jose in September 2007. For the first time in 5 years the blues finished outside the top two in the Premier League, finishing 3rd behind Liverpool and Manchester United. Guus Hiddink did however guide them to a third FA cup win in 9 years with a 2-1 victory over Everton at Wembley.
European Performance:
in the 1980's their position in the English First Division and the subsequent Premier League saw them play in the major European Leagues. To date they have not claimed any silverware in these leagues. In 2008 Israeli Avram Grant came in and took them to their first champions league final which they were about to win before John Terry slipped and missed his vital spot kick and they lost to Manchester United.
They were last years runners up and are now managed by Brazillian Luis Fellipe Scolari. New boss Carlo Ancelotti will hope they can go one better than their semi against barcelon and reach the final in 2010 and if anyone knows how to win the European cup it is Mr Ancelotti. Profile by Chris Howe.
Chelsea Football Club News & Useful Links:
Chelsea Football Club Official Website
Chelsea Official Supporters Club
Chelsea Unofficial Supporters Club
more to follow