4: And Now the Wait is Over

The Blueprint: How Chelsea FC Changed Football

Glenn Hoddle spent three years rebuilding Chelsea into a club that had genuine ambition and a legitimate hope of winning silverware. He signed Ruud Gullit in 1995 to completely transform the look and appeal of the Chelsea squad.
But just as he was getting ready to take the next step with the Blues, England came calling. And Hoddle couldn't deny the call of his country, so would leave Chelsea.
It was the summer of Euro '96 and Chelsea found themselves at those fabled crossroads once more. Where was the club headed - with George Graham as manager? Or with another exciting young talent in the dugout in the form of Ruud Gullit?
Whatever decision Chelsea would make, the club's journey would fork in dramatically different directions. Fortunately, they chose right and major silverware was waiting just around the corner after a 26-year wait.
Although it would all play out to the backdrop of tragedy.
In this episode you will hear from: Roberto Di Matteo, Eddie Newton, Ruud Gullit, Jesper Gronkjaer, Colin Hutchinson, Ken Bates, Glenn Hoddle, Steve Clarke, David Lee, Scott Minto, David Cooper (Matthew Harding's lawyer), Mike Ingham (commentator), Martin Tyler (commentator), Mark Killick (Matthew Harding's best friend), Tim Rolls (author and Chelsea fan), Joel Harding, Luke Harding and former UK Prime Minister, Tony Blair.
The Blueprint is written by Garry Hayes and narrated by Ceri Levy.
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Our theme music "Blue Day '23" is composed by Mike Connaris with bed arrangements by Jake Bradford-Sharp. It's used under license from Mcasso Music.
Archive used in this episode is courtesy of Chelsea TV.