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Chelsea have been blessed with some fantastic teams over the years but few were as brilliant as their 2004-05 vintage.
Managed by Jose Mourinho, Chelsea swept all before them in the Premier League. By the end of the season, they’d won their first league title in 50 years and collected 95 points – which was a record at the time.
With so many strong characters in that dressing room, it’s perhaps not surprising that many of that Chelsea team have tried their hand at management and coaching after their retirement.
We’ve taken a look at which members of that squad have gone into management and how they’ve fared in doing so.
Frank Lampard
It seems like everybody has an opinion about Lampard’s tenure at Chelsea but – if we’re honest – he didn’t do that badly during his time at Stamford Bridge.
Fresh from almost securing promotion for Derby County the previous season, Lampard overcame a transfer ban to blood a number of talented youngsters, reach the FA Cup final and take Chelsea into the Champions League.
It was only afterwards that the wheels came off. Lampard couldn’t resist spending £200million in the transfer market but was unable to get the best out of the likes of Kai Havertz and Timo Werner.
Chelsea were 9th when Lampard was relieved of his duties in January 2021 and, while nobody should call him an elite manager, he demonstrated enough promise to earn another opportunity elsewhere.
At the time of writing, the former England midfielder is the bookie’s favourite for the Norwich job.
John Terry
Terry hasn’t secured a manager’s role just yet but it only feels like a matter of time before the former England captain does so.
After leaving Chelsea in 2017, Terry spent the final year of his playing career at Aston Villa where he became a coach after Steve Bruce’s sacking in October 2018.
His time at Villa Park was successful as Villa achieved promotion and consolidated in the Premier League. Their escape from relegation in 2019-20 was attributed to a much-improved defensive record in the run-in – something for which Terry was given partial credit for.
He left the club at the end of the 2020-21 season, stating: “My immediate plan is to spend some quality time with my family and, thereafter, hopefully take up some invitations to visit clubs and managers around Europe to develop my aim and objective of becoming a manager.
“It has always been my ambition to move into football management and, providing the right opportunity presents itself, I feel ready to take up such a challenge.
Scott Parker
Parker always seemed a likely candidate to go into management. The midfielder demonstrated strong leadership qualities during his playing career, particularly at West Ham, and possessed that natural air of authority that all good bosses should have.
Following his retirement, Parker coached the Tottenham U18s before accepting an invitation to join newly-promoted Fulham as first-team coach in 2018.
He was appointed interim coach following the sacking of Claudio Ranieri in February 2019 but was unable to prevent Fulham’s relegation from the Premier League at the end of that season.
After retaining much of the squad, Parker was able to achieve an instant return to the top flight but a lack of goals saw Fulham relegated again in 2021.
It was following that disappointment that Parker accepted an offer from Championship side Bournemouth, where he currently sits top of the table and looks likely to secure another promotion to the Premier League.
Plus, any excuse to show this…
Don’t mug yourself- The Streets
🤝
Scott Parker’s Fulham beat Leicester! pic.twitter.com/sCYwc7LmE5
— Adam Collings (@Adam_Baron23) December 1, 2020
Damien Duff
An underrated member of that 2004-05 side, Duff has recently secured his first managerial role with Irish top-flight side Sherbourne.
Duff has coached Shamrock Rovers and the Irish national team at various youth levels, spent a season as a first-team coach at Celtic under Neil Lennon and was assistant to Stephen Kenny for the Republic of Ireland team.
“It’s totally out of my comfort zone stuff,” Duff explained at his unveiling. “Am I scared? Absolutely. Do I feel uncomfortable? Absolutely.
“But I’ve been preaching to my Shelbourne’s Under-17s to show personality and courage. For me to say no on Friday, I wasn’t showing courage or personality.
“I didn’t have to speak to anybody. I like my holidays and I was fearful of what I was getting into. But that’s why I’m here.
“I said similar (when I left the Ireland coaching role) that I’d be unhappy with myself if I stayed. I’d be unhappy with myself now if I said no.”
Claude Makelele
After excelling as a defensive midfielder to the extent that every other club started looking for someone to fill the ‘Makelele position’, the former midfielder hasn’t had quite the same impact in the dugout.
Prior to his appointment at Bastia in 2014, Makelele had cut his teeth as an assistant coach at PSG. But that elite education didn’t prevent the former France international from losing his job in under six months, with the French club citing poor results as the main reason for their decision.
Makelele then joined Belgian side Eupen as their head coach in November 2017, where he spent almost two full seasons before returning to his role as youth coach and technical mentor at Chelsea.
Jiri Jarosik
Jarosik didn’t last long at Chelsea, making only 14 league appearances, but the Czech Republic midfielder has enjoyed an eclectic management career since he retired in 2015.
After starting out as an assistant manager at Slovan Liberec, Jarosik has managed four teams in his homeland – Usti nad Labem, Celje, Prostejov and Teplice.
READ: Jiri Jarosik on Jose’s funny videos, dining on boxes and JT’s jeans
Adrian Mutu
His time at Chelsea ended acrimoniously but Mutu was a fantastic talent during his prime and retains legendary status in his native Romania.
Released by the club in October 2004 after testing positive for cocaine, Mutu had spells with Juventus and Fiorentina before retiring in 2017.
Since then, the former striker has managed four teams. The most recent of these was FC U Craiova 1948, with who Mutu parted company at the start of October 2021.
Tiago
Tiago followed Mourinho from Portugal to Stamford Bridge in 2004 and made 51 appearances during his sole season in English football.
The midfielder spent the rest of his playing career with Lyon, Juventus and Atletico Madrid before hanging up his boots and entering the world of management.
After spending a year as an assistant to Diego Simeone, a baptism of fire if ever there was one, Tiago spent time in the national team set-up before taking his first managerial role at Vitoria de Guimaraes in 2020.
But he only lasted three games before tendering his resignation and hasn’t secured another role yet.
Eidur Gudjohnsen
Another underrated component of that brilliant Chelsea side, Gudjohnsen is currently assistant manager of the Iceland national team.
Sadly, this isn’t the marauding Vikings that took Euro 2016 by storm – Iceland have experienced a steep decline since and got nowhere near qualifying for next year’s World Cup.
Joe Cole
The former England international returned to Stamford Bridge in 2018 as a technical academy coach, shortly after he called it quits as a player. 18 months later he left again, with a plan to travel the world and gain more experience overseas.
“I loved it there,” he said after leaving Chelsea a second time. “I’m sure one day I’ll return in some capacity but at the moment, for my development as a coach, I felt going round and going to look and listen and keep my ears and eyes open was the best thing for me.”
His travel plans were hit by Covid-19, so it remains to be seen what’s next for his coaching career, but he still keeps a public profile doing punditry on BT Sport.
READ: When Joe Cole, Eden Hazard & Dimitri Payet lived out my football wet dream
Steven Watt
Watt only made a handful of appearances for Chelsea but he still managed to earn praise from Mourinho for his display in an FA Cup win over Scunthorpe.
After meandering down the leagues in the years that followed, the former defender is now in charge of Isthmian League side Hythe Town after previously managing Margate and Maidstone United.
More Chelsea
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Remembering Arjen Robben, Damien Duff & a Chelsea side at their most fun
Can you name Chelsea’s top 30 Premier League appearance makers?
How the Abramovich takeover curtailed Alexis Nicolas’ budding Chelsea career
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