Chelsea’s recent run of five consecutive Premier League defeats has brought back memories of the last time the club experienced such a dismal run of form. The team in question included some interesting characters, such as a public masturbator and a man who went on to present Songs of Praise. Glenn Hoddle was player-manager at the time, and despite the poor run of results, he managed to keep his job and even led the team to qualify for Europe after reaching the FA Cup Final.
Looking back at the starting XI from November 1993 when Hoddle’s Blues were thumped 4-1 at Elland Road by Leeds, some of the players have gone on to have varied careers. Kevin Hitchcock, the goalkeeper, spent 13 years at Chelsea before becoming a goalkeeper coach and working abroad in India and America. Frank Sinclair, a Chelsea stalwart throughout the 1990s, went on to win several trophies and is now a coach at Doncaster. Gavin Peacock, who played for QPR and Newcastle, later became a minister in Canada after presenting Songs of Praise in 2008.
Other players from the team have ventured into television, such as Jakob Kjeldbjerg who hosted the Danish versions of Gladiators and I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here!, and Dennis Wise who became a much-maligned executive director at Newcastle for a brief period. Neil Shipperley, who scored the consolation goal against Leeds, later tried his hand at management in non-league before being found guilty of public masturbation in December 2019. Mal Donaghy, the ex-Northern Ireland defender, retired from playing at the end of that season.
Chelsea’s current situation is not as dire as it was in 1993, as they have enough points to avoid being dragged into a relegation battle. However, their recent run of form is still their worst in 30 years, and they have had three managers this season who have failed to get the best out of the big-money squad. Frank Lampard, the current manager, will be hoping to turn things around quickly and avoid any further embarrassing comparisons to the team from 1993.