The Ranieri Days

[nono 791]

I started supporting the team after Mourinho arrived. Before that I had never watched football. For a curious supporter can anyone tell me what Abramovich's first year was like ? What was the reaction of Chelsea supporters when they found the club was being purchased by a Russian billionaire? Was Ranieri really always making wacky substitutions? Thanks.

[Heisenberg 1,824]

Ranieri was very good IMO.

[robdog 2,084]

when I first started really following CFC, Rainieri was the gaffer. Good times IMHO. CFC were 2nd Best. Never lost to spudz. CFC would lose to scrubs & le arse. In fact the only time a Ranieri led CFC side defeated le arse was on April 6th, 2004 in the UCL 1/4 finals @ Highbury. I was sad to see Ranieri leave, but he didn't produce a winner & had to go w/ Mr. A running the show.

[gary gordon 1,777]

For me, supporting Chelsea under The tinker man was fun. Nobody really expected anything and when we did win, it was awesome! I feel some Chelsea supporters today take our wins for granted and seem to complain if we don't put 5 goals on every team. It's gonna be fun watching them complain when we start winning all our games by 1 goal now that Jose is back.

[Strike 7,251]

That Champions League QF's vs Arsenal was great. Wayne Bridge thumping in the winner but we lost our bearings in the semis. Should have killed Monaco off

[Ollie 4,400]

The Ranieri days were fun and that's something i never thought i'd say when he was appointed. We'd just lost at home to Leicester 2-0, even Stan fucking Collymore scored ffs, things were getting really bad but we still believed in Luca. Just seemed something was wrong though. The Gullit sacking was weird before Vialli, but when Vialli was sacked and replaced by this guy who'd just relegated Atletico Madrid (With Jimmy Floyd, who he'd reunite with) ... i just simply thought "WTF!" I knew nothing about the guy. The first game, 3-3 at Old Trafford was a sign of things to come, we played attacking football and somehow he got something out of the players. I think Ranieri showed that an experienced manager knows a lot more than an inexperienced ex player going into his first job. I suppose it was also the thinking of Roman when he hired Benitez.

The 03/04 season was hard for him really because he was linked with losing his job all through that season but the football was enjoyable. His best season was 02/03 because he got the team to a new level on his own from when he took over and really bought the team on in 2 years from when he took over in 00/01. From 1999/2002 we were really losing the plot after having the great success from 97/99, we'd just simply had to rebuild. Claudio's work came to fruition in that 02/03 season.

He came in at a tough time and went through a lot with us under different regimes and our massive transition to being a world super power. I'll always have great respect for our tinkerman.

[The only place to be 11,313]

It was crazy when we were bought by Roman and it wasn't like it was now - all of a sudden we'd sign someone and for a few weeks it was like we were signing players everyday.

I remember us having a pre-season friendly at Watford, leaving the house and by the time we got to Vicarage Lane hearing talk of us having signed Joe Cole not long after we got Veron. Every player seemed to be linked with us from Davids to Vieri to Nesta.

As for Ranieri, he was a very popular guy and did well for us. In retrospect it was more of a plateau after the years of Hoddle, Gullit and Vialli when we seemed to be growing every year but it set the stage for the last decade and he'll always hold a special spot in the fans' hearts.

[Term-X 7,891]

For me, supporting Chelsea under The tinker man was fun. Nobody really expected anything and when we did win, it was awesome! I feel some Chelsea supporters today take our wins for granted and seem to complain if we don't put 5 goals on every team. It's gonna be fun watching them complain when we start winning all our games by 1 goal now that Jose is back.

Jose-fucking-Mourinho winning a game 1-0 is very different to any other manager in world football winning a game 1-0 with 'this' football club.

Get a sense of perspective.

[gary gordon 1,777]

Jose-fucking-Mourinho winning a game 1-0 is very different to any other manager in world football winning a game 1-0 with 'this' football club.

Get a sense of perspective.

You moron, i would be glad to win every game 1 nil with a goal in the 89th minute. I was talking about some of the "tika takka" fanboys who have somehow made there way here from Arsenaland. I have a feeling they won't be happy.

[Tomo 21,733]

We had a good season in his first year and then we signed a few players (including Lampard) in 2001 and really thought we would finish the CL places but that season (apart from 10/11) was probably the most frustrating season because it felt like we were going backwards.

We finished 6th, and only the form of Jimmy, Eidur and Carlo got us their, despite getting to the FA Cup final i think overall we had a poor season. We were a true 3 man team that season.

02/03 however, we recovered, got 4th and the rest they say is history.

[Ankit 3,176]

Started following football around 2002 and Chelsea under Ranieri was the start of my Chelsea affiliation. Was a kid back then and hence didn't know too much about many players and managers but i absolutely loved Eidur Gudjohnsen! Ranieri was known as the tinker man as far as i know because he was changing the formation and the players most of the time. Still remember that Jesper Gronkajaer goal that curled into the far post and won and secured the Champions League for next season. Knocked out Arsenal in the CL when we could not beat them for so long, Ranieri shed a tear that night! It was magical.

[Term-X 7,891]

You moron, i would be glad to win every game 1 nil with a goal in the 89th minute. I was talking about some of the "tika takka" fanboys who have somehow made there way here from Arsenaland. I have a feeling they won't be happy.

Lmao, rattled.

Your post couldn't be more redundant, because I WAS applying it to those fans, and that you needed a sense of perspective to look at it from that point of view. What Mourinho brings to the table transcends results and style of play.

[BlueLion. 21,491]

The first season of the Abramovich era was the most exciting year in Chelsea's history, I think. Yes, we didn't achieve what we wanted to on the pitch, but the promise of amazing things to come was incredible. Signing new players every couple of days... it was absolutely incredible.

[Tomo 21,733]

I remember Crespo was my favorite player outside of Chelsea, i couldn't believe it when we signed him.

All summer we were getting linked with Vieri and i was thinking no go for Crespo then we did. I get defensive when he gets branded a flop, because he quite simply wasn't. He is the only forward that went toe to toe with Didier as an equal for that forward role.

[EBH 283]

It was good. It was hard for me to follow, little internet those days in Colombia.

Gudjohnsen and Floyd were my favorite players. I think like what gary said, it was a simple time, when just a win would be so much, would make me happy. Now... all this pressure, all this attention, it is not the same I think. It was more fun before. Now if we do not win everything, it is like failure... before if we lost, no deal, we had fun, all that matter.

[Bosnian Blue 2,471]

Fucked up against Monaco Rainy, but THAT Wayne Bridge goal was a moment to cherish forever. And the Tinkerman's celebration afterwards haha

Had a great eye for talent. I believe he enjoyed it with us. Good old times.

[The Skipper 20,593]

One goal to sum up the Ranieri days? Wayne Bridge vs. Arsenal.

[Barbara 15,149]

The first season of the Abramovich era was the most exciting year in Chelsea's history, I think. Yes, we didn't achieve what we wanted to on the pitch, but the promise of amazing things to come was incredible. Signing new players every couple of days... it was absolutely incredible.

I wish I had enjoyed it more than I did.

I had only started supporting the team one year prior to that - or something - and when Roman came and we started signing players I wasn't impressed. I was a RM fan for many years and an Inter fan for even more years, so I was used to the constant signing of new players.

I wish I had started supporting the team earlier, I still remember as if it was today I saying: I'll go with the blue team, they're the underdogs and there's something about them.

the curious thing is that I don't like blue as a color - outside of football that is - and I remember being torn between Liverpool and Chelsea back then. Liverpool the most successful English team of all time or Chelsea, the charming blue team from London. And I decided for the underdog only to have the situation completely reversed a few years later. That's crazy man.

But I wish I had started supporting Chelsea earlier so I could have some hindsight about a few things. Like this crazy change of having a new guy - and great guys nonetheless - signed every other day.

I would be happier than a hen chick in the trash!