In February 1993 Chelsea sacked Ian Porterfield making Chelsea the first club to sack a manager in Premier League history.
Porterfield was the manager for the admin’s first-ever Chelsea game a 3-2 defeat after being 2-nil up which characterised the inconsistent nature of the Blues during this era.
His sacking came after a bright start to the season and he was replaced at the end of the season by Chelsea FA Cup-winning legend David Webb. Webb took the Blues on a seven-game unbeaten run to stave off the threat of relegation and further enhance his legendary reputation among Chelsea fans.
Changes In Managerial Lifecycle
The managerial lifecycle is a lot different now than it was back in 1993.
It is unfathomable to think in the modern league that the first manager to be sacked would not meet their fate until February. Let alone that they would be the only manager to be sacked before the season’s end.
The fact Chelsea were the first club to sack a manager would not surprise someone who was more familiar with the managerial policies of Roman Abramovich.
We live in a results-driven league where the financial stakes of success and failure have never been higher. The money in the game today may have been triggered by the foundation of the Premier League but it has exploded beyond recognition compared the early 90’s.
This, the media and fan opinion explosion plus a number of other factors mean that owners are less patient and more trigger happy when a poor run of form sees their investment slide
Whilst being the first club to sack a manager is a dubious honour, we are not the club to have had the most managers during the Premier League era (for now)
You can find out who tops the list in our related article here.
Sack Lampard
Give him more time