1998–99 Chelsea F.C. season

The 1998–99 season was Chelsea F.C.'s 85th competitive season, seventh consecutive season in the Premier League and 93rd year as a club.

Chelsea

1998–99 season
Chairman	Ken Bates
Manager	Gianluca Vialli
FA Premier League	3rd
FA Cup	Quarter-finals
League Cup	Quarter-finals
UEFA Super Cup	Winners
UEFA Cup Winners' Cup	Semi-finals
Top goalscorer	League: Gianfranco Zola (13) All: Gianfranco Zola (15)
Highest home attendance	35,016 (vs. Derby County, 16 May 1999)
Lowest home attendance	17,714 (vs. Helsingborgs IF, 17 September 1998)
Average home league attendance	34,754
Home colours Away colours Third colours

Season summary

After a solid fourth-place finish coupled with European and League Cup success the previous season, Chelsea really felt that they could challenge for the title this season. Chelsea made more big name signings, including French World Cup winning defender Marcel Desailly from A.C. Milan, Spanish international full-back Albert Ferrer from Barcelona and, in a club-record £5.4 million move, Italian international striker Pierluigi Casiraghi from Lazio. Casiraghi's season and career was cut short by a knee injury, but his compatriot Gianfranco Zola had arguably the best season of his career, leading Chelsea to a serious title challenge, scoring 15 goals in all competitions and setting up many other goals for his teammates.

Ultimately, the European Super Cup, won by beating Europeans champions Real Madrid, was the only trophy that Chelsea had to show for their excellence. Their defence of the now-defunct Cup Winners' Cup ended in the semi-finals, while their title challenge was ended in early May when they just couldn't get the better of Manchester United or Arsenal. Nonetheless, a final third-place finish booked them their first ever UEFA Champions League campaign and was another triumph for their excellent young manager Gianluca Vialli, who, at 35, announced his retirement as a player to concentrate on his managerial duties.

Final league table

Main article: 1998–99 FA Premier League

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification or relegation
1	Manchester United (C)	38	22	13	3	80	37	+43	79	Qualification for the Champions League first group stage
2	Arsenal	38	22	12	4	59	17	+42	78
3	Chelsea	38	20	15	3	57	30	+27	75	Qualification for the Champions League third qualifying round
4	Leeds United	38	18	13	7	62	34	+28	67	Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round
5	West Ham United	38	16	9	13	46	53	−7	57	Qualification for the Intertoto Cup third round

Source: Premier League
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champion.

Results summary

Overall								Home						Away
Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
38	20	15	3	57	30	+27	75	12	6	1	29	13	+16	8	9	2	28	17	+11

Source: 1998-99 FA Premier League table

Results by round

Round	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	32	33	34	35	36	37	38
Ground	A	H	H	H	A	H	A	H	A	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	H	A	H	H	A	A	A	A	H	A	H	H	A	H
Result	L	D	D	W	W	W	D	W	D	D	W	W	D	D	W	D	D	W	W	D	W	W	L	W	D	W	W	L	W	W	W	D	D	D	W	W	D	W
Position	18	17	18	15	11	7	6	4	6	5	4	4	4	6	3	3	3	1	1	2	1	1	2	2	2	2	2	3	3	3	3	3	2	3	3	3	3	3

Source: 11v11.com: 1998-99 Chelsea results
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss

Squad

[1][2] Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
1	GK	NED	Ed de Goey
2	DF	ROU	Dan Petrescu
3	DF	NGA	Celestine Babayaro
5	DF	FRA	Frank Leboeuf
6	DF	FRA	Marcel Desailly
7	MF	DEN	Bjarne Goldbæk
8	MF	URU	Gustavo Poyet
9	FW	ITA	Gianluca Vialli
10	FW	ITA	Pierluigi Casiraghi
11	MF	ENG	Dennis Wise (captain)
12	DF	ENG	Michael Duberry
13	GK	ENG	Kevin Hitchcock
14	DF	ENG	Graeme Le Saux
15	MF	ITA	Samuele Dalla Bona
16	MF	ITA	Roberto Di Matteo
17	DF	ESP	Albert Ferrer

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
18	DF	ENG	Andy Myers
19	FW	NOR	Tore André Flo
20	DF	WAL	Danny Slatter
21	DF	FRA	Bernard Lambourde
22	FW	ENG	Mark Nicholls
23	GK	RUS	Dmitri Kharine
24	MF	ENG	Eddie Newton
25	FW	ITA	Gianfranco Zola
26	DF	ENG	John Terry
27	DF	ENG	Jon Harley
28	MF	ENG	Jody Morris
29	DF	ENG	Neil Clement
30	DF	ITA	Luca Percassi
32	FW	FIN	Mikael Forssell
34	MF	ENG	Nick Crittenden

Left club during season

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
4	DF	SCO	Steve Clarke (retired)
7	MF	DEN	Brian Laudrup (to Copenhagen)

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
15	DF	ENG	David Lee (to Bristol Rovers)
20	DF	JAM	Frank Sinclair[3] (to Leicester City)

Reserve squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
-	GK	ENG	Rhys Evans
-	DF	ENG	Darren Baxter
-	DF	ENG	Stephen Broad
-	MF	ITA	Samuele Dalla Bona
-	MF	ENG	Paul Hughes
-	MF	ENG	Courtney Pitt

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
-	MF	ENG	Jay Richardson
-	FW	SCO	Steven Hampshire
-	FW	ENG	Sam Parkin
-	FW	ENG	Joe Sheerin
-	FW	ENG	Rob Wolleaston

Statistics

No.	Pos	Nat	Player	Total		FA Premier League		Cup Winners Cup		FA Cup		Football League Cup
				Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
1	GK		Ed de Goey	48	0	35	0	7	0	6	0	0	0
2	DF		Dan Petrescu	45	3	23+9	3	6	0	4	0	3	0
3	DF		Celestine Babayaro	43	4	26+2	3	7	1	4+1	0	3	0
5	DF		Frank Leboeuf	45	7	33	4	6	1	4	1	2	1
6	DF		Marcel Desailly	44	1	30+1	0	7	1	6	0	0	0
7	MF		Brian Laudrup	10	1	5+2	0	3	1	0	0	0	0
7	MF		Bjarne Goldbæk	31	5	13+10	5	0	0	2+4	0	2	0
8	MF		Gustavo Poyet	37	13	21+7	11	6	0	0	0	3	2
9	FW		Gianluca Vialli	20	10	9	1	5	1	3	2	3	6
10	FW		Pierluigi Casiraghi	14	1	10	1	4	0	0	0	0	0
11	MF		Dennis Wise	36	2	21+1	0	7	1	5	1	2	0
12	DF		Michael Duberry	32	0	18+7	0	2	0	2	0	3	0
13	GK		Kevin Hitchcock	3	0	2+1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
14	DF		Graeme Le Saux	45	0	30+1	0	8	0	6	0	0	0
15	DF		Andy Myers	4	0	1	0	1	0	0+2	0	0	0
16	MF		Roberto Di Matteo	45	3	26+4	2	7	0	4+2	1	1+1	0
17	DF		Albert Ferrer	40	0	30	0	7	0	2	0	0+1	0
19	FW		Tore Andre Flo	44	13	18+12	10	8	2	2+1	0	2+1	1
21	DF		Bernard Lambourde	25	1	12+5	0	3	1	2	0	2+1	0
22	FW		Mark Nicholls	16	0	0+9	0	2	0	0+3	0	2	0
23	GK		Dmitri Kharine	5	0	1	0	1	0	0	0	3	0
24	MF		Eddie Newton	9	0	1+6	0	1	0	0+1	0	0	0
25	FW		Gianfranco Zola	48	15	35+2	13	5	1	6	1	0	0
26	DF		John Terry	7	0	0+2	0	1	0	2+1	0	0+1	0
27	DF		Jon Harley	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0+1	0
28	MF		Jody Morris	27	1	14+4	1	2	0	5	0	2	0
29	DF		Neil Clement	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0+2	0
30	DF		Luca Percassi	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0+1	0
32	FW		Mikael Forssell	13	3	4+6	1	0	0	1+2	2	0	0

Statistics taken from . Squad details and shirt numbers from and .

Results

Premier League

Coventry City v Chelsea

15 August 1998 1	Coventry City	2–1	Chelsea	Coventry
	Huckerby  10' Dublin  16'		Poyet  37'	Stadium: Highfield Road

Chelsea v Newcastle United

22 August 1998 2	Chelsea	1–1	Newcastle United	Fulham, London
	Babayaro  23'		A. Andersson  43'	Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Chelsea v Arsenal

9 September 1998 3	Chelsea	0–0	Arsenal	Fulham, London
				Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Chelsea v Nottingham Forest

12 September 1998 4	Chelsea	2–1	Nottingham Forest	Fulham, London
	Zola  1' Poyet  35'		Darcheville  69'	Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Blackburn Rovers v Chelsea

21 September 1998 5	Blackburn Rovers	3–4	Chelsea	Blackburn, Lancashire
	Sutton  34', 79' (pen.) Pérez  57'  66'	Report	Zola  15' Leboeuf  51' (pen.) Le Saux  66' Flo  82', 86'	Stadium: Ewood Park Referee: Peter Jones

Chelsea v Middlesbrough

26 September 1998 6	Chelsea	2–0	Middlesbrough	Fulham, London
	Pallister  46' (o.g.) Zola  81'	Report		Stadium: Stamford Bridge Referee: Mike Reed

Liverpool v Chelsea

4 October 1998 7	Liverpool	1–1	Chelsea	Liverpool, Merseyside
	Redknapp  83'		Casiraghi  10'	Stadium: Anfield

Chelsea v Charlton Athletic

17 October 1998 8	Chelsea	2–1	Charlton Athletic	Fulham, London
	Leboeuf  18' (pen.) Poyet  88'		Youds  58'	Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Leeds United v Chelsea

25 October 1998 9	Leeds United	0–0	Chelsea	Leeds, West Yorkshire
				Stadium: Elland Road

West Ham United v Chelsea

8 November 1998 10	West Ham United	1–1	Chelsea	Newham, London
	Ruddock  4'		Babayaro  76'	Stadium: Boleyn Ground

Chelsea v Wimbledon

14 November 1998 11	Chelsea	3–0	Wimbledon	Fulham, London
	Zola  32' Poyet  55' Petrescu  70'			Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Leicester City v Chelsea

21 November 1998 12	Leicester City	2–4	Chelsea	Leicester, Leicestershire
	Izzet  40' Guppy  60'		Zola  28', 90' Poyet  39' Flo  56'	Stadium: Filbert Street

Chelsea v Sheffield Wednesday

28 November 1998 13	Chelsea	1–1	Sheffield Wednesday	Fulham, London
	Zola  27'		Booth  67'	Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Everton v Chelsea

5 December 1998 14	Everton	0–0	Chelsea	Liverpool, Merseyside
				Stadium: Goodison Park

Chelsea v Aston Villa

9 December 1998 15	Chelsea	2–1	Aston Villa	Fulham, London
	Zola  30' Flo  90'		Hendrie  32'	Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Derby County v Chelsea

12 December 1998 16	Derby County	2–2	Chelsea	Derby, Derbyshire
	Carbonari  26' Sturridge  90'		Flo  55' Poyet  59'	Stadium: Pride Park Stadium

Manchester United v Chelsea

16 December 1998 17	Manchester United	1–1	Chelsea	Trafford, Greater Manchester
	A. Cole  45'		Zola  83'	Stadium: Old Trafford

Chelsea v Tottenham Hotspur

19 December 1998 18	Chelsea	2–0	Tottenham Hotspur	Fulham, London
	Poyet  80' Flo  90'			Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Southampton v Chelsea

26 December 1998 19	Southampton	0–2	Chelsea	Southampton, Hampshire
			Flo  20' Poyet  48'	Stadium: The Dell

Chelsea v Manchester United

29 December 1998 20	Chelsea	0–0	Manchester United	Fulham, London
				Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Newcastle United v Chelsea

9 January 1999 21	Newcastle United	0–1	Chelsea	Newcastle-upon-Tyne
			Petrescu  39'	Stadium: St. James' Park

Chelsea v Coventry City

16 January 1999 22	Chelsea	2–1	Coventry City	Fulham, London
	Leboeuf  45' Di Matteo  90'		Huckerby  9'	Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Arsenal v Chelsea

31 January 1999 23	Arsenal	1–0	Chelsea	Islington, London
	Bergkamp  32'			Stadium: Highbury

Chelsea v Southampton

6 February 1999 24	Chelsea	1–0	Southampton	Fulham, London
	Zola  11'			Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Chelsea v Blackburn Rovers

17 February 1999 25	Chelsea	1–1	Blackburn Rovers	Fulham, London
	Morris  44'		Ward  84'	Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Nottingham Forest v Chelsea

20 February 1999 26	Nottingham Forest	1–3	Chelsea	Nottingham
	van Hooijdonk  39'		Forssell  6' Goldbæk  25, 83'	Stadium: City Ground

Chelsea v Liverpool

27 February 1999 27	Chelsea	2–1	Liverpool	Fulham, London
	Leboeuf  7' (pen.) Goldbæk  38'	Report	Owen  77'	Stadium: Stamford Bridge Referee: Paul Durkin

Chelsea v West Ham United

13 March 1999 28	Chelsea	0–1	West Ham United	Fulham, London
			Kitson  75'	Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Aston Villa v Chelsea

21 March 1999 29	Aston Villa	0–3	Chelsea	Birmingham, West Midlands
			Flo  59', 89' Goldbæk  86'	Stadium: Villa Park

Charlton Athletic v Chelsea

3 April 1999 30	Charlton Athletic	0–1	Chelsea	Greenwich, London
			Di Matteo  11'	Stadium: The Valley

Wimbledon v Chelsea

11 April 1999 31	Wimbledon	1–2	Chelsea	Croydon, London
	Gayle  90'		Flo  24' Poyet  53'	Stadium: Selhurst Park

Middlesbrough v Chelsea

14 April 1999 32	Middlesbrough	0–0	Chelsea	Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire
				Stadium: Riverside Stadium

Chelsea v Leicester City

18 April 1999 33	Chelsea	2–2	Leicester City	Fulham, London
	Zola  30' Elliott  69' (o.g.)		Duberry  82' (o.g.) Guppy  88'	Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Sheffield Wednesday v Chelsea

25 April 1999 34	Sheffield Wednesday	0–0	Chelsea	Sheffield
				Stadium: Hillsborough

Chelsea v Everton

1 May 1999 35	Chelsea	3–1	Everton	Fulham, London
	Zola  25', 81' Petrescu  60'		Jeffers  69'	Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Chelsea v Leeds United

5 May 1999 36	Chelsea	1–0	Leeds United	Fulham, London
	Poyet  68'			Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Tottenham Hotspur v Chelsea

10 May 1999 37	Tottenham Hotspur	2–2	Chelsea	Haringey, London
	Iversen  38' Ginola  64'		Poyet  4' Goldbæk  73'	Stadium: White Hart Lane

Chelsea v Derby County

16 May 1999 38	Chelsea	2–1	Derby County	Fulham, London
	Babayaro  40' Vialli  68'		Carbonari  88'	Stadium: Stamford Bridge

Goal Scorers

• Gianfranco Zola 13
• Gustavo Poyet 11
• Tore Andre Flo 10
• Bjarne Goldbaek 5
• Frank Leboeuf 4
• Celestine Babayaro 3
• Dan Petrescu 3
• Roberto Di Matteo 2
• Pierluigi Casiraghi 1
• Jody Morris 1
• Mikael Forssell 1
• Gianluca Vialli 1

UEFA Super Cup

Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Scorers
28 August 1998	Real Madrid	N	1-0	10,000	Poyet

Goal Scorers

• Gustavo Poyet 1

UEFA Cup Winners' Cup

Date	Round	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Scorers
17 September 1998	R1	Helsingborg	H	1-0	17,714	Leboeuf
1 October 1998	R1	Helsingborg	A	0-0	12,348
22 October 1998	R2	Copenhagen	H	1-1	21,207	Desailly
5 November 1998	R2	Copenhagen	A	1-0	24,188	Laudrup
4 March 1999	QF	Vålerenga	H	3-0	34,177	Babayaro, Zola, Wise
18 March 1999	QF	Vålerenga	A	3-2	17,936	Vialli, Lambourde, Flo
8 April 1999	SF	Mallorca	H	1-1	35,524	Flo
22 April 1999	SF	Mallorca	A	0-1	18,848

Goal Scorers

• Tore Andre Flo 2
• Frank Leboeuf 1
• Marcel Desailly 1
• Brian Laudrup 1
• Celestine Babayaro 1
• Gianfranco Zola 1
• Dennis Wise 1
• Gianluca Vialli 1
• Bernard Lambourde 1

League Cup

Date	Round	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Scorers
28 October 1998	R3	Aston Villa	H	4-1	26,790	Vialli (3), Flo
11 November 1998	R4	Arsenal	A	5-0	37,562	Leboeuf, Vialli (2), Poyet (2)
1 December 1998	QF	Wimbledon	A	1-2	19,286	Vialli

Goal Scorers

• Gianluca Vialli 6
• Gustavo Poyet 2
• Tore Andre Flo 1
• Frank Leboeuf 1

FA Cup

Date	Round	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Scorers
2 January 1999	R3	Oldham Athletic	A	2-0	12,770	Vialli (2)
25 January 1999	R4	Oxford United	A	1-1	9,059	Leboeuf (pen.)
3 February 1999	R4 (R)	Oxford United	H	4-2	32,106	Wise, Zola, Forssell (2)
13 February 1999	R5	Sheffield Wednesday	A	1-0	29,410	Di Matteo
7 March 1999	R6	Manchester United	A	0-0	54,587
10 March 1999	R6 (R)	Manchester United	H	0-2	33,075

Goal scorers

• Gianluca Vialli 2
• Mikael Forssell 2
• Frank Leboeuf 1
• Dennis Wise 1
• Gianfranco Zola 1
• Roberto Di Matteo 1

References

1. http://www.footballsquads.co.uk/eng/1998-1999/faprem/chelsea.htm
2. http://www.11v11.com/teams/chelsea/tab/players/season/1999
3. Sinclair was born in Lambeth, England, but also qualified to represent Jamaica internationally.