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Club Connections – Chelsea

Of course on Sunday, Manchester United face Chelsea at Old Trafford, looking to make it 5 wins out of 5in the Premier League so far. With that in mind it’s worth looking at 8 individuals who have both spent time at United and Chelsea in their careers in the game.

Mark Bosnich

Australian Bosnich had two spells at United in between eight highly successful years at Aston Villa. The highly talented goalie first joined United in 1989 on a free transfer but after two seasons brought out his contract moving to the Midlands side.

By 1999 however he returned becoming Peter Schmeichel’s successor only to last a season in the role. The signing of Fabien Barthez ended his United career. After being released Mark joined Chelsea for a short spell before being sacked due to failing a drug’s test.

Mal Donaghy

Surprisingly at the age of 31, Donaghy signed for United from second division side Luton Town for £650k in 1988. The Northern Ireland international came to United with steady experience after making over 400 appearances for the Hatters during which time he had appeared in two World Cups.

In four seasons at Old Trafford under Sir Alex Ferguson, Mal became a solid reliable defender and made 119 appearances over the space of four seasons. In 1992 before the inaugural Premier League season, he joined Chelsea for two years before retiring.

George Graham

Graham is of course best remembered for his time in charge of Arsenal where he formed arguably the best British back four of the late 80’s and early 90’s. Despite that it’s easy to forget that he was a good solid midfielder who gained the captaincy at United following Bobby Charlton’s retirement.

During his time at Old Trafford he was often criticised for his ‘relaxed’ style which often found United wanting in the middle of the park. Before joining United from Arsenal, George spent two years at Chelsea in the 1960’s making his name as a solid midfielder after joining them from Aston Villa.

Stewart Houston

After playing under Tommy Doherty at Chelsea, Houston a solid defender was reunited with his old boss in December 1973 after joining United from Brentford in December 1973 midway through the season which would end with the club being relegated to Division 2.

Stewart’s second season saw United romp to the Championship, with his third season ending in him picking up a FA Cup loser’s medal in 1976. Injury denied him making amends for that in the following season’s final. The Scot would later become old team-mate George Graham’s assistant at Arsenal.

Mark Hughes

Both Manchester United and Chelsea fans will always remember Hughes fondly. In two spells at Old Trafford – in between a short spell with Barcelona – the Welshman’s goals helped the club win eight major honours making him a club legend.

Chelsea came calling for Mark in 1995 and despite being written off by the press, he would go onto score 39 goals in 123 games for the Blues, winning 3 major honours. The former Wales manager was briefly tipped to return to Stamford Bridge as manager before Andre Villas-Boas got the job.

Juan Sebastian Veron

When Sir Alex Ferguson paid £28.1m to sign Veron from Lazio in the summer of 2001, many United fans felt that he was the missing ingredient needed for United to dominate in Europe. Despite his talent, he never really settled in our midfield and after two seasons was sold to Chelsea for around £15m.

Despite scoring on his debut against Liverpool at Anfield, Juan never settled at Stamford Bridge due to a mixture of bad-form and injuries. Amazingly he only played 14 games for the Blues before being loaned out to Inter Milan for two seasons before returing back home to Argentina.

Mickey Thomas

After making his name as talented young player at Wrexham, Thomas joined United in 1978 after beign signed by Dave Sexton and despite not being the most reliable of wingers, his commitment and hunger helped win over supporters.

When Ron Atkinson replaced Sexton in the summer of 1981, he was sold to Everton in  a swap deal that saw John Gidman come the other way. Mickey would join Chelsea helping them win the old second division before being sold to West Brom in 1985.

Ray Wilkins

Younger fans may only know Wilkins from his time as Chelsea’s assistant manager and Sky Sports pundit. It’s worth remembering that he started his career at Stamford Bridge in 1973 and was made captain at the age of 18 two years later.

After the Blues got relegated in 1979, he joined United becoming a key part of the club’s midfield under Dave Sexton and then Ron Atkinson. Despite five seasons of trusty service, Ray never hit the heights that he was predicted and left to join AC Milan in 1984.

By Adam Dennehey @ADennehey87

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