No Chelsea manager had a shorter spell in charge of the club than Luiz Felipe Scolari under Roman Abramovich’s 19-year ownership.
The Brazilian lasted just seven months before being given the boot in February 2009 – blaming Nicolas Anelka as the primary reason for his axing.
Scolari signed a four-year contract to manage Chelsea in 2008GettyScolari arrived at Stamford Bridge with great expectations having guided Brazil to World Cup glory in 2002.
He succeeded Avram Grant in the dugout in west London, who took the Blues to the Champions League and League Cup finals in the 2007/08 season.
The ex-West Ham boss was relieved of his duties just three days after Manchester United prevailed on penalties in the European Cup final.
That final saw Anelka, who was only signed from Bolton four months prior, miss the deciding spot-kick with Edwin van der Sar keeping out his effort.
And Scolari hinted that the ex-Arsenal striker played a major role in a second managerial sacking following his refusal to play on the wing.
Amid accusations that Scolari’s poor grasp of the English language played a factor in his premature departure, the 76-year-old instead declared that Anelka should shoulder some of the blame.
Anelka spent his career playing as a centre-forward – having done so at Arsenal, Real Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain, Liverpool, Manchester City, Fenerbahce and Bolton prior to his £15million move to Chelsea.
Despite scoring just twice in 24 games in all competitions for the Blues in the second half of the 2007/08 term, he started strongly the following campaign.
At the time of Scolari’s contract termination in February 2009, Anelka had found the back of the net on 17 occasions – with 14 goals coming in the Premier League.
Though he hadn’t scored in the English top-flight since the 1-1 draw with West Ham on December 14.
Scolari has accused Anelka of being unwilling to play on the wing to accommodate Didier DrogbaGetty - ContributorChelsea talisman Didier Drogba had been plagued by nagging knee knocks during the first half of the season.
Once he was fully fit, Scolari was keen on the Ivorian to lead the line with Anelka to feature on the flanks – something the Frenchman is claimed to have been strongly against.
It led to Drogba and Anelka alternating for the starting role up top, with one ultimately left on the bench.
Anelka and Drogba started just once together during Scolari’s time in charge – a 2-0 win against West Brom on Boxing Day which saw Drogba get on the score sheet, with Anelka on the right wing.
Commenting on the dilemma, Scolari told ESPN Brazil: “I had Anelka playing up front. No. 9. Top scorer in the league.
“The players return, I make a meeting, and in the meeting I say, ‘Look, now that the players have all returned, Drogba is back after two months, we will try to work a situation involving the two attackers playing one by the side, one in the centre, changing positions.’
Scolari lasted the shortest time at Chelsea from the 15 managers under Abramovich’s ownership Drogba and Anelka started just once together under Scolari“Then Anelka, the league’s top scorer, said, ‘I do not play on the wing.’
“Well, that’s when I said, ‘You don’t play on the wing, one’s going to be on the left, it’s over, I’m not going to stay here arguing with you guys.’
“I left there and our team was third in the league, three or four points behind top [seven behind leaders Manchester United].
“Qualified for the round-of-16 or quarter-finals of the Champions League, [last-16] but there was this bad environment, that situation.
“I don’t know if I had continued, what would have happened. But it was interrupted. There, I got upset.
“They’ll say, ‘Oh, because you didn’t speak English perfectly.’ Of course, I did not. I didn’t speak English perfectly.
The Blues icons regularly started together following Scolari’s sacking“But I understood perfectly. We understood, with my English, and the English that was spoken there, we understood perfectly.”
Scolari was replaced by Guus Hiddink in the Chelsea dugout, with the Dutchman taking over on an interim basis.
And he cemented himself as a club icon after he guided the Blues to FA Cup glory and a third-placed finish having won 16 of his 22 games in charge.
Unlike Scolari, Hiddink elected to start Drogba and Anelka together, with Chelsea flitting between a 4-4-2, with the duo up top, or a 4-3-3, with the ex-Gunners hero shifted to the right wing.
Hiddink’s arrival saw Anelka’s form return, where he scored in each of Chelsea’s last four league fixtures to win the only Golden Boot of his career.
Anelka and Drogba would go on to star in Chelsea winning the Premier League and FA Cup double the following season under Carlo Ancelotti.
Anelka scored 59 goals in 184 games for Chelsea from 2008-2012Ancelotti followed Hiddink’s approach in using Anelka in every position across the frontline, with Drogba solely being used up top.
While Chelsea enjoyed huge success following Scolari, the Brazilian failed to manage another European club.
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