Football Clubs

The Hammers have brought more than their fair share of flair and passion to the Barclaycard Premiership. With a host of talented stars in their line-up, attractive football is guaranteed.

‘Onwards and upwards’ would be a perfect motto for West Ham’s time in the F.A. Premier League. Under Billy Bonds and then Harry Redknapp, the Hammers consolidated in the top flight before finding their feet and recording four top-10 finishes in the space of five years.

And Redknapp’s successor, Glenn Roeder, continued the momentum with a seventh-placed finish in his first season, 2001/2002. After the long-serving Bonds guided the team back into the top flight in 1993, Redknapp stepped up from his post as assistant manager to take the helm in 1994 and led the evolution from strugglers to the F.A. Premier League’s stylish stalwarts.

Stylish football has always been expected at White Hart Lane and with favourite son Glenn Hoddle in charge, Barclaycard Premiership success could also be on the agenda.

The North London outfit have brought a galaxy of stars to the F.A. Premier League and inspired fans with some flamboyant and exciting football. The signing of German striker Jurgen Klinsmann from Monaco in 1994 paved the way for many of the league’s top foreign imports.

Former Spurs and Argentina hero Ossie Ardiles, and later Gerry Francis, engineered a fearsome attacking line-up around Klinsmann. Nick Barmby, Darren Anderton, Ilie Dumitrescu and Teddy Sheringham were all fielded in a team which was built with only one thing in mind – goals.

Jean Tigana and Fulham find themselves in rented accommodation at Loftus Road this season but their bid to establish themselves as a major force in the Barclaycard Premiership continues apace

Fulham has enjoyed a remarkable rise to the top tier of English football. As the F.A. Premier League kicked off in 1992, Fulham were simply hoping to avoid relegation to the Third Division.

Three years later, the Craven Cottage club was in danger of falling off the footballing map altogether – but those days seem like a distant memory now. Flamboyant chairman Mohammed Al Fayed dreamt of Fulham winning the F.A. Premier League and invested heavily in pursuit of his ambition.

Barclaycard Premiership glamour boys Chelsea proved long ago that they have plenty of substance alongside their style as they brought home the silverware for the Stamford Bridge fans.

Chelsea have become one of the FA Premier League’s success stories. The London club have flourished since the competition’s inception in 1992 and chairman Ken Bates has overseen a radical redevelopment of their plush Stamford Bridge base.

Mid-table mediocrity was the order of the day before Ruud Gullit’s appointment as Chelsea boss in 1996 ushered in a new era. The flamboyant Dutchman helped attract a number of world-class players to Stamford Bridge with Roberto Di Matteo and Gianfranco Zola soon becoming heroes in the royal blue jersey.

Alan Curbishley has helped make Charlton one of the success stories of the Barclaycard Premiership. His astute management and transfer dealings give fans at the Valley every reason to be cheerful.

In Alan Curbishley, Charlton have one of the brightest young managers in the FA Premier League. Curbishley and his team showed great character to bounce back from relegation in 1999 and immediately reclaim their top-flight status at the first attempt.

On this occasion, Charlton had come prepared and they beat Manchester City 4-0 in their opening match as they turned their Valley home into a fortress.

Chelsea, Arsenal and Newcastle were all beaten and Charlton finished an outstanding season in ninth spot, despite being odds-on for the drop at the start of the campaign.

Barclaycard Premiership champions Arsenal have treated us to some truly exhilarating football with Arsene Wenger combining the best of British with the top talent from around the world.

The current FA Premier League champions are one of the giants of English football and a consistent challenger for top honours. Arsenal, under the leadership of enigmatic Frenchman Arsene Wenger, shook off their ‘boring’ image and began to serve up some of the most attractive football in the league.

Thanks largely to the immense influence of Tony Adams and more recently the astute signings of players such as Thierry Henry, Patrick Vieira and Robert Pires, Arsenal have climbed back to the top of the pile. Their rise culminated in a second FA Premier League and FA Cup double in 2002, to add to their 1998 achievement.