Merlin’s Premier League Stickers of the Week: I Remember When You Played… Chelsea ’98’s Coaches

Following Roberto Di Matteo’s unbelievable end to the season as Chelsea caretaker manager, here’s a look back at when he played as well as his team-mates from circa 1998 who have also tried their hand at management (they’ve all been at it!).

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Featured in 1997/98: Ruud Gullit (Terek Grozny manager; managed Chelsea, Newcastle, Feyenoord & LA Galaxy)

Featured in 1997/98: Roberto Di Matteo (Chelsea caretaker manager; managed MK Dons & West Brom), Gus Poyet (Brighton manager, was assistant at Swindon, Leeds & Tottenham), Gianfranco Zola (managed West Ham, was assistant for Italy U21), Mark Hughes (QPR manager; managed Wales, Blackburn, Man City & Fulham), Dan Petrescu (Kuban Krasnodar manager; managed Rapid Bucureşti, Sportul Studenţesc, Wisła Kraków & Unirea Urziceni), Gianluca Vialli (managed Chelsea & Watford), Steve Clarke (was assistant at Newcastle (& caretaker manager), Chelsea, West Ham & Liverpool), Dennis Wise (managed Millwall, Southampton, Swindon & Leeds)

Featured in 1998/99: Pierluigi Casiraghi (managed Lenano & Italy U21)

[All these (and more…) can be found in the Sticker Archive]

 

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Merlin’s Premier League Stickers of the Week: Are you still playing??? (Part 2)

Following on from Are you still playing??? (Part 1) this week it’s a selection of well known current players as they were in 1997/98…

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Featured in 1997/98: Shay Given (currently at Aston Villa), Nicolas Anelka (left Chelsea in January 2012, now playing for Shanghai Shenhua), Kevin Davies (currently at Bolton Wanderers), Rio Ferdinand (currently at Manchester United), Philip Neville (currently at Everton)

[Every player mentioned above can be found in the Sticker Archive]

It’s Up For Grabs Now! – The Title Decider

[Including: Merlin’s Premier League Stickers of the Week: Arsenal Legends… 1988/89]

With Premier League leaders Man United set to face second place Man City on Monday night in a match that could decide the fate of the title this season it seems like a good time to look back at another title deciding bout from the season I was born. In 1988/89 however, due to the Hillsborough disaster the meeting between the top two clubs was postponed until the very end of the season.

POS	Club	Pld	W	D	L	F	A	GD	PTS
1	Liverpool	37	22	10	5	65	26	+39	76
2	Arsenal	37	21	10	6	71	36	+35	73

Anything other than an Arsenal win by at least two clear goals would see Liverpool clinch the title, the problem for the Gunners was that Liverpool had not lost by two or more goals at Anfield in three years, Arsenal hadn’t beaten them there since 1974/75 and Liverpool had never lost a match with both John Aldridge and Ian Rush up front!

“Now I’ve heard of Liverpool. They’re famous for being good, aren’t they? Gary Lineker, Peter Shilton, all that lot.”

– Jo in Nick Hornby’s Fever Pitch

Despite Lineker and Shilton never having played for Liverpool, Jo had it about right.

Over to Mr George Graham…

 

“Arsenal come streaming forward now in surely what will be their last attack. A good ball by Dixon, finding Smith, for Thomas, charging through the midfield… it’s up for grabs now… Thomas, right at the end!!!”

– Brian Moore

Level on points, level on Goal Difference, Arsenal had won the league on goals scored:

Pos	Club	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
1	Arsenal	38	22	10	6	73	36	+37	76
2	Liverpool	38	22	10	6	65	28	+37	76

Which brings us to the Premier League Stickers of the Week: the Arsenal team that started that day and brought the Division One trophy back to Highbury (although O’Leary features as an 80’s Panini because I somehow failed to collect him as either a player or a manager!)

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From 1993/94: John Lukic (Leeds United), Lee Dixon, Tony Adams, Nigel Winterburn, David Rocastle (Leeds United), Kevin Richardson (Aston Villa), Alan Smith (repeat)

From 1994/95: Steve Bould

From 1995/96: Michael Thomas (Liverpool!!!)

From 1996/97: Paul Merson

[Panini 1987/88: David O’Leary]

[All these (and more…) can be found in the Sticker Archive]

Merlin’s Premier League Stickers of the Week: You Played For Darlo!!! (Part 1)

Division 3 Play-Off Finalists 1995/96

A footballer’s career can be a funny thing, whether essentially a one-club man or the consummate journeyman you can find yourself playing at the very highest level of English football as well as Feethams football ground over the years (or if you’re really lucky the Reynolds Arena / New Stadium / Williamson Motors Stadium / 96.6 TFM Darlington Arena / Balfour Webnet Darlington Arena / Northern Echo Darlington Arena, soon to be the only 25,000 seater stadium in the Conference North).

Here is handful of players who did just that: Premier League players who also ran out for the mighty Darlington F.C.

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From 1993/94: Gary Pallister – Darlo (loan) 1985/86 (also appointed operations director in 2010)

From 1994/95: Neil Maddison – Darlo 2001–2007

From 1997/98: Matty Appleby – Darlo (loan) 1993/94, signed for 1994-96 and 2005/06

From 1998/99: Julian Joachim – Darlo 2006-08 (club record signing of £100,000); Phil Stamp – Darlo 2005–2007

[All these (and more…) can be found in the Sticker Archive]

 

As an extra treat here is some semi-unrelated but absolutely fantastic Pathé News from 1957/1958…

Can we start referring to Chelsea as The Pensioners again? What a nickname!

Merlin’s Premier League Stickers of the Week: Internationals… World Cup Winners (Part 1)

Continuing the Juninho Paul-Easter celebrations today is a selection of World Cup winners who graced the Premier League including the Brazilian maestro himself.

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From 1994/95: Jurgen Klinsmann (with West Germany in 1990)

From 1996/97: Juninho Paulista (with Brazil in 2002)

From 1997/98: Emmanuel Petit, Patrick Vieira (both with France in 1998)

From 1998/99: Stéphane Guivarc’h (with France 1998)

That’s right, France won the World Cup with Stéphane Guivarc’h up front… No, honestly they did!

[All these (and more…) can be found in the Sticker Archive]

Merlin’s Premier League Stickers of the Week: Brits & Irishmen Abroad… Italy (Part 1)

Today it’s a selection of Premier League players who have also plied their trade in Italy…

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If you have a bit of time then take a look at this piece I wrote last year:

Mountain’s Blog – Football Italia: The all-time XI British & Irish footballers to play in Italy

or for a whole website based on English footballers playing abroad see Gav Stone’s Les Rosbifs.

From 1993/94: Ian Rush (Juventus 1987/88)

From 1995/96: David Platt (Bari 1991/92, Juventus 1992/93, Sampdoria 1993-95), Mark Hateley (AC Milan 1984-87)

From 1997/98: Paul Ince (Inter Milan 1995-97)

From 1999/2000: Robbie Keane (Inter Milan 2000/01)

[All these (and more…) can be found in the Sticker Archive]

Merlin’s Premier League Stickers of the Week: I Remember When You Played… Pundits (Part 1 – Sky Sports)

This week it’s a look back at the glory days of some of Sky Sports’ finest…

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From 1993/94: Paul Merson, Tony Gale, Alan Smith, Iain Dowie

From 1994/95: Jamie Redknapp, Paul Walsh,

From 1996/97: Gary Neville

[All these (and more…) can be found in the Sticker Archive]

Merlin’s Premier League Stickers of the Week: Are you still playing??? (Part 1)

Merlin Premier League sticker albums 1993-99

Merlin’s Premier League sticker albums were simply brilliant. Starting in the 1993/94 season they were both a hobby and an encyclopaedia for a young kid taking their first steps into football fandom.

I’ll be posting a handful of stickers every week starting with some players who featured in the earliest albums and are still (sort of) going almost 19 years later.

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Featured in 1993/94: Ryan Giggs (still playing for Man Utd – almost 19 years at the very top), Robbie Fowler (after spells in Australia and Thailand was due to play in the IPL style Premier League Soccer before it was postponed – recently on trial at Blackpool March 2012), Nicky Barmby (retired Jan 2012 to become Hull manager), Sol Campbell (released by Newcastle Utd May 2011).

Featured in 1994/95: Paul Scholes (still in the youth team in 1993/94 and had retired in May 2011 but is still going today at the highest level).

Honourable mentions: David James (1994/95 – currently playing for Bristol City), Gary Speed (1993/94 – retired May 2010), Frank Sinclair (1993/94 – currently playing for Colwyn Bay).

[Every player mentioned above can be found in the Sticker Archive]