1997–98 Chelsea F.C. season

The 1997–98 season was Chelsea F.C.'s 84th competitive season, their 9th consecutive season in the English top flight and 92nd year as a club.

Chelsea

1997–98 season
Chairman	Ken Bates
Manager	Ruud Gullit (until 12 February) Gianluca Vialli (from 12 February)
Premiership	4th
FA Cup	Third round
League Cup	Winners
Charity Shield	Runners-up
UEFA Cup Winners' Cup	Winners
Top goalscorer	League: Vialli/Flo (11) All: Vialli (19)
Highest home attendance	34,845 (vs. Bolton Wanderers, 10 May)
Lowest home attendance	29,075 (vs. Blackpool, 19 Apr)
Average home league attendance	32,901
Home colours Away colours
← 1996–97 1998–99 →

Season summary

With conceding goals being a major issue last season, Chelsea signed Dutch international goalkeeper Ed de Goey, who proved to be a relative success. Chelsea's only other major signings were young Norwegian striker Tore Andre Flo and Uruguayan international midfielder Gustavo Poyet from Real Zaragoza, who added more goals from an otherwise very defensive midfield. Chelsea were well on course for a top-five finish and success in the European Cup Winners' Cup and the Coca-Cola Cup when manager Ruud Gullit was sacked on 12 February following a dispute with chairman Ken Bates. His job went to 33-year-old striker Gianluca Vialli, who took on the role of player-manager and achieved instant success - within three months of his appointment, Vialli had guided the Blues to glory on the continent and at Wembley. This success gave Chelsea fans hope that the following season could spell the end of their title wait which began in 1955.

Final league table

Main article: 1997–98 FA Premier League

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification or relegation
2	Manchester United	38	23	8	7	73	26	+47	77	Qualification for the Champions League second qualifying round
3	Liverpool	38	18	11	9	68	42	+26	65	Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round
4	Chelsea	38	20	3	15	71	43	+28	63	Qualification for the Cup Winners' Cup first round[lower-alpha 1]
5	Leeds United	38	17	8	13	57	46	+11	59	Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round[lower-alpha 2]
6	Blackburn Rovers	38	16	10	12	57	52	+5	58

Source: Premier League
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
Notes:

1. Chelsea qualified for the Cup Winners' Cup as defending champions. As they were also the League Cup winners, the UEFA Cup berth vacated was awarded to Blackburn Rovers.
2. Aston Villa was rewarded entry to the UEFA Cup through UEFA Fair Play ranking.

Results summary

Overall								Home						Away
Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
38	20	3	15	71	43	+28	63	13	2	4	37	14	+23	7	1	11	34	29	+5

Source: 1997-98 FA Premier League table

Results by round

Round	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	32	33	34	35	36	37	38
Ground	A	A	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	A	H	A	H	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	A	H	H	H	A	A	A	H	H	H	H	A	H
Result	L	W	W	W	W	L	D	W	L	W	L	W	W	L	W	W	W	D	W	D	L	W	L	W	L	L	L	L	W	L	W	L	W	W	W	L	L	W
Position	14	11	6	4	3	5	5	4	5	4	4	4	4	4	3	2	2	3	3	3	3	2	3	2	2	4	5	5	4	4	4	5	4	4	3	3	4	4

Source: 11v11.com: 1997-98 Chelsea results
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss

Results

Premier League

Coventry City v Chelsea

9 August 1997 1	Coventry City	3–2	Chelsea	Coventry, West Midlands
	Dublin 41', 42', 88'		Sinclair 39' Flo 71'	Stadium: Highfield Road

Barnsley v Chelsea

24 August 1997 2	Barnsley	0–6	Chelsea	Barnsley, South Yorkshire
			Petrescu 25' Poyet 38' Vialli 44', 57', 65', 82'	Stadium: Oakwell

Wimbledon v Chelsea

27 August 1997 3	Wimbledon	0–2	Chelsea	Croydon, London
			Di Matteo 60' Petrescu 64'	Stadium: Selhurst Park

Chelsea v Southampton

30 August 1997 4	Chelsea	4–2	Southampton	Fulham, London
	Petrescu 7' Leboeuf 28' Hughes 31' Wise 34'		Davies 25' Monkou 59'	Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Crystal Palace v Chelsea

13 September 1997 5	Crystal Palace	0–3	Chelsea	Croydon, London
			Hughes 20' Leboeuf 26' (pen.) Le Saux 90'	Stadium: Selhurst Park

Chelsea v Arsenal

21 September 1997 6	Chelsea	2–3	Arsenal	Fulham, London
	Poyet 40' Zola 60'		Bergkamp 45', 59' Winterburn 89'	Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Manchester United v Chelsea

24 September 1997 7	Manchester United	2–2	Chelsea	Trafford, Greater Manchester
	Scholes 36' Solskjær 86'		Berg 25' (o.g.) Hughes 68'	Stadium: Old Trafford

Chelsea v Newcastle United

27 September 1997 8	Chelsea	1–0	Newcastle United	Fulham, London
	Poyet 75'			Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Liverpool v Chelsea

5 October 1997 9	Liverpool	4–2	Chelsea	Liverpool, Merseyside
	Berger 20', 35', 57' Fowler 64'		Zola 22' Poyet 85' (pen.)	Stadium: Anfield

Chelsea v Leicester City

18 October 1997 10	Chelsea	1–0	Leicester City	Fulham, London
	Leboeuf 88'			Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Bolton Wanderers v Chelsea

26 October 1997 11	Bolton Wanderers	1–0	Chelsea	Bolton, Greater Manchester
	Holdsworth 72'			Stadium: Reebok Stadium

Aston Villa v Chelsea

1 November 1997 12	Aston Villa	0–2	Chelsea	Birmingham, West Midlands
			Hughes 38' Flo 82'	Stadium: Villa Park

Chelsea v West Ham United

9 November 1997 13	Chelsea	2–1	West Ham United	Fulham, London
	Ferdinand 57' (o.g.) Zola 83'		Hartson 85' (pen.)	Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Blackburn Rovers v Chelsea

22 November 1997 14	Blackburn Rovers	1–0	Chelsea	Blackburn, Lancashire
	Croft 11'			Stadium: Ewood Park

Chelsea v Everton

26 November 1997 15	Chelsea	2–0	Everton	Fulham, London
	Wise 80' (pen.) Zola 90' (pen.)			Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Chelsea v Derby County

29 November 1997 16	Chelsea	4–0	Derby County	Fulham, London
	Zola 12', 66', 77' Hughes 35'			Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Tottenham Hotspur v Chelsea

6 December 1997 17	Tottenham Hotspur	1–6	Chelsea	Haringey, London
	Vega 43'		Flo 40', 63', 90' Di Matteo 48' Petrescu 59' Nicholls 78'	Stadium: White Hart Lane

Chelsea v Leeds United

13 December 1997 18	Chelsea	0–0	Leeds United	Fulham, London
				Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Sheffield Wednesday v Chelsea

20 December 1997 19	Sheffield Wednesday	1–4	Chelsea	Sheffield, South Yorkshire
	Pembridge 71'		Petrescu 30' Vialli 56' Leboeuf 65' (pen.) Flo 84'	Stadium: Hillsborough

Chelsea v Wimbledon

26 December 1997 20	Chelsea	1–1	Wimbledon	Fulham, London
	Vialli 8'		Mi. Hughes 28'	Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Southampton v Chelsea

29 December 1997 21	Southampton	1–0	Chelsea	Southampton, Hampshire
	Davies 16'			Stadium: The Dell

Chelsea v Coventry City

10 January 1998 22	Chelsea	3–1	Coventry City	Fulham, London
	Nicholls 65', 70' Di Matteo 78'		Telfer 30'	Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Everton v Chelsea

18 January 1998 23	Everton	3–1	Chelsea	Liverpool, Merseyside
	Speed 39' Ferguson 62' Duberry 83' (o.g.)	Report	Flo 37'	Stadium: Goodison Park

Chelsea v Barnsley

31 January 1998 24	Chelsea	2–0	Barnsley	Fulham, London
	Vialli 23' Hughes 47'	Report		Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Arsenal v Chelsea

8 February 1998 25	Arsenal	2–0	Chelsea	Islington, London
	S. Hughes 4', 42'			Stadium: Highbury

Leicester City v Chelsea

21 February 1998 26	Leicester City	2–0	Chelsea	Leicester, Leicestershire
	Heskey 3', 89'			Stadium: Filbert Street

Chelsea v Manchester United

28 February 1998 27	Chelsea	0–1	Manchester United	Fulham, London
			G . Neville 31'	Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Chelsea v Aston Villa

8 March 1998 28	Chelsea	0–1	Aston Villa	Fulham, London
			Joachim 51'	Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Chelsea v Crystal Palace

11 March 1998 29	Chelsea	6–2	Crystal Palace	Fulham, London
	Vialli 15', 44' Zola 17' Wise 84' Flo 89', 90'		Hreiðarsson 7' Bent 87'	Stadium: Stamford Bridge

West Ham United v Chelsea

14 March 1998 30	West Ham United	2–1	Chelsea	Newham, London
	T. Sinclair 69' Unsworth 74'		Charvet 54'	Stadium: Boleyn Ground

Derby County v Chelsea

5 April 1998 31	Derby County	0–1	Chelsea	Derby, Derbyshire
			Hughes 37'	Stadium: Pride Park Stadium

Leeds United v Chelsea

8 April 1998 32	Leeds United	3–1	Chelsea	Leeds, West Yorkshire
	Hasselbaink 7', 47' Wetherall 22'		Charvet 11'	Stadium: Elland Road

Chelsea v Tottenham Hotspur

11 April 1998 33	Chelsea	2–0	Tottenham Hotspur	Fulham, London
	Flo 75' Vialli 88'			Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Chelsea v Sheffield Wednesday

19 April 1998 34	Chelsea	1–0	Sheffield Wednesday	Fulham, London
	Leboeuf 23' (pen.)			Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Chelsea v Liverpool

25 April 1998 35	Chelsea	4–1	Liverpool	Fulham, London
	Hughes 11', 78' Clarke 67' Flo 72'		Riedle 45'	Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Chelsea v Blackburn Rovers

29 April 1998 36	Chelsea	0–1	Blackburn Rovers	Fulham, London
			Gallacher 48'	Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Newcastle United v Chelsea

2 May 1998 37	Newcastle United	3–1	Chelsea	Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Tyneside
	Dabizas 39' Lee 42' Speed 59'		Di Matteo 77'	Stadium: St. James' Park

Chelsea v Bolton Wanderers

10 May 1998 38	Chelsea	2–0	Bolton Wanderers	Fulham, London
	Vialli 73' Morris 90'			Stadium: Stamford Bridge

FA Cup

Date	Round	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Scorers
4 January 1998	3	Manchester United	H	3–5	34,792	Le Saux, Vialli (2)

League Cup

Date	Round	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Scorers
15 October 1997	3	Blackburn Rovers	H	1–1	18,671	Di Matteo
After extra time, Chelsea won on 4–1 on penalties
19 November 1997	4	Southampton	H	2–1	20,968	Morris, Flo
7 January 1998	QF	Ipswich Town	A	2–2	22,088	Le Saux, Flo
After extra time, Chelsea won on 4–1 on penalties
28 January 1998	SF	Arsenal	A	1–2	38,144	Hughes
18 February 1998	SF	Arsenal	H	3–1	34,330	Petrescu, Di Matteo, Hughes
29 March 1998	F	Middlesbrough	N	2–0	77,698	Sinclair, Di Matteo

UEFA Cup Winners' Cup

Date	Round	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Scorers
8 September 1997	1	Slovan Bratislava	H	2–0	23,067	Danny Granville, Di Matteo
2 October 1997	1	Slovan Bratislava	A	2–0	13,850	Di Matteo, Vialli
23 October 1997	2	Tromsø	A	2–3	6,438	Vialli (2)
6 November 1997	2	Tromsø	H	7–1	29,363	Leboeuf, Petrescu (2), Vialli (3), Zola
5 March 1998	QF	Real Betis	A	2–1	31,000	Flo (2)
19 March 1998	QF	Real Betis	H	3–1	32,300	Sinclair, Di Matteo, Zola
2 April 1998	SF	Vicenza	A	0–1	19,319
16 April 1998	SF	Vicenza	H	3–1	33,810	Poyet, Zola, Hughes
13 May 1998	F	VfB Stuttgart	N	1–0	30,216	Zola

First team squad

Squad at end of season^[1]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 1 GK  NED Ed de Goey 2 DF  ROU Dan Petrescu 3 DF  NGA Celestine Babayaro 5 DF  FRA Frank Leboeuf 6 DF  SCO Steve Clarke 7 DF  FRA Bernard Lambourde 8 MF  URU Gus Poyet 9 FW  ITA Gianluca Vialli 10 FW  WAL Mark Hughes 11 MF  ENG Dennis Wise (captain) 12 DF  ENG Michael Duberry 13 GK  ENG Kevin Hitchcock 14 DF  ENG Graeme Le Saux 15 DF  ENG David Lee 16 MF  ITA Roberto Di Matteo 17 DF  ENG Danny Granville

No. Pos. Nation Player 18 DF  ENG Andy Myers 19 FW  NOR Tore André Flo 20 DF  JAM Frank Sinclair[note 1] 21 MF  ENG Paul Hughes 22 FW  ENG Mark Nicholls 23 GK  RUS Dmitri Kharine 24 MF  ENG Eddie Newton 25 FW  ITA Gianfranco Zola 26 DF  FRA Laurent Charvet (on loan from Cannes) 28 MF  ENG Jody Morris 29 DF  ENG Neil Clement 31 GK  IRL Nick Colgan 32 MF  SCO Steven Hampshire 33 FW  ENG Joe Sheerin 34 MF  ENG Nick Crittenden 35 DF  ENG Jon Harley

Left club during season

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 30 GK  NOR Frode Grodås (to Tottenham Hotspur) 4 DF  NED Ruud Gullit (retired)

No. Pos. Nation Player — MF  ENG David Rocastle (on loan to Hull City)

Reserve squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player — DF  ENG Stephen Broad — DF  ENG John Terry

No. Pos. Nation Player — FW  RSA Mark Stein

Statistics

No.	Pos	Nat	Player	Total		Premier League		FA Cup		Football League Cup		Cup Winners Cup
				Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
1	GK	NED	Ed de Goey	42	0	28	0	1	0	4	0	9	0
2	DF	ROU	Dan Petrescu	42	8	31	5	1	0	3	1	7	2
3	DF	NGA	Celestine Babayaro	13	0	8	0	0	0	1+1	0	3	0
4	MF	NED	Ruud Gullit	10	0	0+6	0	0	0	3+1	0	0	0
5	DF	FRA	Frank Leboeuf	46	6	32	5	1	0	4	0	9	1
6	DF	SCO	Steve Clarke	40	1	22+4	1	1	0	4+2	0	7	0
7	DF	FRA	Bernard Lambourde	13	0	5+2	0	0	0	3	0	3	0
8	MF	URU	Gus Poyet	18	5	11+3	4	0	0	0	0	4	1
9	FW	ITA	Gianluca Vialli	33	19	14+7	11	0+1	2	2+1	0	8	6
10	FW	WAL	Mark Hughes	39	12	25+4	9	1	0	3+3	2	3	1
11	MF	ENG	Dennis Wise	39	3	26	3	0	0	4	0	9	0
12	DF	ENG	Michael Duberry	33	0	23	0	1	0	3	0	6	0
13	GK	ENG	Kevin Hitchcock	2	0	0	0	0	0	2	0	0	0
14	DF	ENG	Graeme Le Saux	34	3	26	1	1	1	4	1	3	0
15	DF	ENG	David Lee	3	0	1	0	0	0	0+2	0	0	0
16	MF	ITA	Roberto Di Matteo	43	10	28+2	4	1	0	4	3	8	3
17	DF	ENG	Danny Granville	20	1	9+4	0	0	0	3	0	4	1
18	DF	ENG	Andy Myers	17	0	11+1	0	0+1	0	1	0	3	0
19	FW	NOR	Tore André Flo	44	15	16+18	11	1	0	3+1	2	5	2
20	DF	JAM	Frank Sinclair	32	2	20+2	1	0	0	4+1	1	5	0
21	MF	ENG	Paul Hughes	11	0	5+4	0	0	0	1	0	1	0
22	FW	ENG	Mark Nicholls	24	3	8+11	3	1	0	2	0	2	0
23	GK	RUS	Dmitri Kharine	10	0	10	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
24	MF	ENG	Eddie Newton	29	0	17+1	0	0	0	3+1	0	7	0
25	FW	ITA	Gianfranco Zola	40	12	23+4	8	1	0	4	0	8	4
26	DF	FRA	Laurent Charvet	13	2	7+4	2	0	0	1	0	1	0
28	MF	ENG	Jody Morris	14	2	9+2	1	0	0	1	1	2	0
32	FW	SCO	Steven Hampshire	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0
34	MF	ENG	Nick Crittenden	3	0	0+2	0	0	0	1	0	0	0
35	DF	ENG	Jon Harley	3	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Statistics taken from Archived 20 May 2009 at the Wayback Machine. Squad details and shirt numbers from and .

Transfers

In

• Laurent Charvet - Cannes, loan
• Ed de Goey - Feyenoord, £2,250,000, June 1997
• Gus Poyet - Real Zaragoza, free, June 1997
• Tore André Flo - Brann, £300,000, 1997
• Celestine Babayaro - Anderlecht, £2,250,000, 1997
• Bernard Lambourde - Bordeaux, 1997
• Graeme Le Saux - Blackburn Rovers, £5,000,000, August 1997

Out

• David Rocastle - Sabah, released, May 1998

Notes

1. Sinclair was born in Lambeth, England, but also qualified to represent Jamaica internationally.

References

1. "FootballSquads - Chelsea - 1996/97". www.footballsquads.co.uk.