The Blueprint: How Chelsea FC Changed Football

In the final installment of our sit down with Joe Cole, the Chelsea legend goes deep on his relationship with Jose Mourinho and the mentality that helped deliver the Blues an unprecedented period of dominance in English football.

"He's here, here's there..." and now Joe Cole is the latest interview being released in full on The Blueprint Tapes . The Chelsea hero sat down with Garry Hayes and Ceri Levy to discuss his Blues career for The Blueprint , taking listeners behind the scenes to the defining moments for him and the club during a critical period in the club's history. In Part 1 of this interview, Joe opens up on how...

In the second part of this exclusive and candid chat, former Chelsea captain John Terry reveals how he was given the armband by Jose Mourinho and how the Blues went on to become one of Europe's most successful clubs.

Listen to John Terry speak about his Chelsea career like never before! The Blueprint is releasing the full interviews from our main narrative series, starting with Chelsea's captain, leader, legend who opens up on the struggles he faced at Stamford Bridge - almost being released as youngster - before going on to become the most decorated captian in the Blues' storied history. Chelsea's modern hist...

Following Roman Abramovich's Chelsea takeover in July 2003, Claudio Ranieri became a "dead man walking" with constant speculation surrounding his job at Stamford Bridge. And after a spectacular collapse against 10-man Monaco in the Champions League semi-final later that season, the Italian's fate was all but sealed. Step forward Jose Mourinho, a recently crowned Champions League winner who, after...

Where were you on 1 July 2003? As it turns out, a lot of those people connected with Chelsea can't quite remember, either! It's a day that has gone down in history – the day that modern Chelsea was truly created as Roman Abramovich took over the club from Ken Bates. What followed was unprecedented in football. Chelsea embarked on a record-breaking transfer spree that made headlines across Europe a...

As Chelsea started to establish themselves at the top end of English football with a flurry of major honours in the late 1990s, change was awaiting them on the horizon. The Blues had not long fielded the Premier League's first starting XI that featured overseas players only. It was symbolic of English football's transition to becoming more cosmopolitan, but the appointment of Claudio Ranieri in Se...

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 w...

In just two years, Glenn Hoddle had taken Chelsea from the doldrums of the Premier League to a European semi-final. It was April 1995, and Real Zaragoza stood between the Blues and a match-up with London rivals Arsenal in the Cup Winners' Cup final. Chelsea would lose that tie 4-3 on aggregate, but, importantly, that European campaign ignited something in the Chelsea manager and managing director,...

When Glenn Hoddle arrived at Chelsea in 1993, he thought he was becoming the manager of a Premier League club. He soon found out the Blues were in name only. Hoddle had stepped into a club that was years behind its rivals and needed to dramatically improve standards. From player recruitment to the playing style and basics such as nutrition and how the team trained. It was a new dawn at Chelsea and...

As Chelsea faced Barcelona in the 2004/05 Champions League, the club was about to navigate unchartered waters. Jose Mourinho and his men were disrupting the European game and the continent's elite didn't like it one bit. Come the end of the Blues' Last-16 clash, UEFA labelled them as the "Enemies of Football", referee Anders Frisk retired from the game on account of death threats and a modern riva...

Mark Killick was best friends with Matthew Harding, the pair finding kinship owing to a shared love for Chelsea Football Club. Killick was also an executor of Harding's will following his tragic death in October 1996 and speaks publicly with The Blueprint for the first time. In a varied interview, Killick provides new insight to Harding's hopes and ambitions for Chelsea, including making the Blues...

Matthew Harding is a significant and important figure in the history Chelsea Football Club after his investments into the Blues in the 1990s helped the club to scale new heights. Much has been made of the so-called "Battle for Stamford Bridge" between Harding and former Chelsea owner, Ken Bates. But little is known or spoken about with regard to Harding outside of this. Who was he? What was he lik...

In the second part of The Ken Bates Tapes , the former Chelsea FC owner opens up on his strained relationship with Matthew Harding and the circumstances surrounding the Blues' sale to Roman Abramovich. Bates explains Chelsea's financial situation ahead of the sale in 2003 and challenges the notion the club was facing financial difficulty. Our theme music "Blue Day '23" is composed by Mike Connaris...

Over a two part interview, Garry Hayes and Ceri Levy sit down with former Chelsea FC owner Ken Bates to hear him tell his Stamford Bridge story like never before. Bates seldom gives interviews these days. Indeed, he doesn't do documentaries, which makes The Ken Bates Tapes all the more compelling. Listeners will hear how Bates ushered in a new dawn for Chelsea FC and English football. From battlin...

As Didier Drogba approached the penalty spot in Munich, he knew Chelsea's destiny rested on his shoulders. A club that two decades earlier had flirted with extinction, faced potential bankruptcy, reached five Champions League semi-finals and lost a final on penalties, was staring destiny in the face once more. And this time, Drogba delivered, stroking his penalty home... somehow, Chelsea Football...