10 Chelsea Heroes Whose Careers Have Nosedived Since Leaving

6. Mark Hughes

It was a surprising move when Mark Hughes traded Old Trafford for Stamford Bridge in June 1995, but the Welsh striker went on to become one of the Blues€™ key players during their resurgence as a top club during the latter part of the 90€™s. He went on to take the place of Gianluca Vialli and formed a potent partnership with diminutive attacker Gianfranco Zola. By the time he left in 1998, he had scored 39 goals in 123 games for the club and had firmly endeared himself to the Stamford Bridge faithful. By then, however, he was 34 years old and didn€™t have much left in the tank. To his credit, he went on to play five more seasons, with the majority coming in the top-flight for Southampton, Everton and Blackburn Rovers, but he managed to muster just ten strikes in 144 appearances. He finally brought down the curtain on a fine career in 2002, but he will surely have known that he never quite cut it anywhere after Stamford Bridge - possibly due to his ageing limbs and the fact that he had been trying to juggle the part-time managerial role with the Welsh national side since 1999.