Chelsea Blues
Chelsea have become one of the FA Premier League's success stories. The London club have flourished since the competition's inception in 1992 and former chairman Ken Bates oversaw a radical redevelopment of their plush Stamford Bridge base. Mid-table mediocrity was the order of the day before Ruud Gullit's appointment as Chelsea boss in 1996 ushered in a new era. The flamboyant Dutchman helped attract a number of world-class players to Stamford Bridge with Roberto Di Matteo and Gianfranco Zola soon becoming heroes in the royal blue jersey. Chelsea's attractive brand of football earned them sixth place in the Premiership in 1997 and FA Cup glory confirmed their improvement. When Gullit departed in 1998, Gianluca Vialli achieved a fourth-place finish and European Cup Winners' Cup and League Cup wins. The big names continued to arrive, including World Cup winners Marcel Desailly and Didier Deschamps. A third FA Cup triumph was secured in 2000 before Vialli made way for Claudio Ranieri, who soon moulded a competitive side, securing four more top-six placings until his departure in May 2004.
A fresh chapter in the club's history was opened with the arrival of new owner Roman Abramovich in summer 2003 as he financed the arrivals of several big-name signings, including Damien Duff, Didier Drogba, Arjen Robben and Joe Cole. Champions League winning coach Jose Mourinho was added to the Chelsea staff in June 2004 and collected his first piece of silverware in February 2005 with victory over Liverpool in the Carling Cup final.