The fall guys at Chelsea

London: It all started in June 2003, when a certain Roman Abramovich took over Chelsea Football Club and embarked on a remarkable journey to catapult the Blues to European football dominance, selling old players, buying new and famous ones, spending money and putting them on the right course… and erm, yea, sacking eight managers in the process. Claudio Ranieri: He was already the manager of the club when Roman took over, and guided Chelsea to their best finish in the English Premier League in 49 years, coming second behind Arsenal’s invincibles on that campaign. He is the man to have brought in Joe Cole and Claude Makalele to the club, but eventually got the sack in May 2004, paving the way for Jose Mourinho to take charge. Played 199, won 107, drawn 46, lost 46. [caption id=“attachment_235095” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Chelsea football club await yet another manager. AP[/caption] Jose Mourinho: Easily the most successful manager Chelsea have had in the Russian dawn. Jose Mourinho was brought in after he did the unthinkable with FC Porto- win the European Champions League. He declared himself ‘The Special One’ in his first press conference and was an instant hit with the English media. Jose won two EPL titles, two Carling Cups, one FA Cup and the Community Shield, overlooking a period of unprecedented home dominance. What added to his success was forging a team around the nucleus of Frank Lampard, John Terry and new signings Didier Drogba, Michael Essien and Ricardo Carvalho. Jose left the club on mutual consent after a rare bad run of form, sending shockwaves across the football world, and leaving nothing to imagination for those who were wondering what the reasons were. Abramovich was interfering, the purchase of Andriy Shevchenko had backfired and Jose was not taking any more. His record- Played 182, won 123, drawn 39, lost 20. Avram Grant: The then Director of Football was moved into the place of manager after Mourinho left. When many thought that this would not work, Grant firmly remains as one of the most successful ever. He carried on Jose’s tactics and this simple approach did the trick. He guided them to the Champions League final which they lost to Manchester United on penalties. Not many fans were clamouring for him to be replaced, but he was just not famous enough for Abramovich. Played 54, won 36, drawn 12, lost 6. Luiz Felipe Scolari: There were reports of a rift with star striker Didier Drogba within a few months of him taking over. The World Cup winning coach had no lack of quality, but left in almost as many months as Andre Villas-Boas. This sacking was probably a signal that this would be the norm at Chelsea. The position was already being seen as jinxed, especially after a World Cup winner was removed within a year. Played 36, won 20, drawn 11, lost 5. Guus Hiddink: He came at a tough time and left the club with a 72.7 percent win record, with players gutted at him not accepting a full-time role. He came to help the team while being Russia manager at the same time, but returned to the national fold to honour his contract. He won the FA Cup during a short stint. After every sacking, his name comes up as a possible replacement. Played 21, won 15, drawn 5, lost 1. Carlo Ancelotti: The former AC Milan manager and one of the most successful coaches in European football took over the reigns at Chelsea and delivered instant success in the form of Chelsea’s first league and cup Double. His second season in-charge started with a bang and then unbelievably fizzled out in the run-in to the new year. Abramovich, with his unquenchable thirst, sacked him in a fit of impatience.   Played 107, won 67, drawn 19, lost 21. Andre Villas-Boas: A lot had been said about how the Russian owner had changed his ways, entrusting the club to AVB, a 34-year old who had won the Quadruple with FC Porto the season before and was touted as the next Special One. He has had a sketchy record so far (well, he’s sacked now) and in spite of paying 13.3 million pounds to prize him from Porto and another 10 million in compensation, Roman Abramovich showed him the door. He had clearly lost the dressing room amidst trying to change the set-up of a club which is clearly in transition. Maybe went at it too quickly. Played 38, won 18, drawn 11, lost 9. Roberto di Matteo: Of all the sackings till date, this one was the most shocking of them all. Di Matteo inherited AVB’s team — a team divided in their allegiances and with cracks developing in the dressing room. But the Italian quickly turned the season around, delivering the FA Cup and finally, the Champions League after beating Bayern Munich. Abramovich’s lust for the trophy finally satiated, Di Matteo’s 2012-13 season started with a swagger and a modern attacking style which was lauded by critics and pundits. But after beating Tottenham Hotspur in style, they lost to Manchester United in the league and to Shakhtar Donetsk and Juventus in the Champions League. They also lost to West Bromwich in the league and drew to Swansea and Liverpool. While the results almost knocked Chelsea out of the Champions League, they were still just 4 points adrift from the top of the EPL table with 26 games left to play. Abramovich however, wasn’t patient enough for a manager who brought the club their greatest glory. Played 41, won 25, drawn 8, lost 8