In Chinese culture, the zodiac cycle lasts for 12 years with each year represented by a different animal. The tiger follows the rat and the ox as the third animal in the cycle and our recent campaigns under this symbol have proven to be quite eventful for the Blues.

2010 – Double delight

The most recent Year of the Tiger did not start too well for Chelsea as we bowed out to Inter Milan in the Champions League and dropped four points off the pace in the Premier League after a 1-1 draw at Blackburn Rovers.

However, everything clicked into place during the closing stretch of the 2009/10 season as we won seven of our last eight games, netting 33 goals and conceding four in a run which included important victories at Old Trafford and Anfield and seven-goal hauls against Aston Villa and Stoke City.

It put us a point ahead of Manchester United before our final game against Wigan when early nerves gave way to a party at the Bridge as we scored eight unanswered goals to clinch the title in style.

A week later, a penalty save by Petr Cech and a sensational Didier Drogba free-kick secured a 1-0 win over Portsmouth in the FA Cup final as we claimed a historic league and cup Double.

First centurions: Chelsea became the first team to record a century of goals in a Premier League season when Drogba headed in the fifth goal in our finale against Wigan. The Ivorian added two more to complete his hat-trick in an 8-0 win as we ended the campaign with 103 goals.

1998 – Vialli’s cup kings

The previous Year of the Tiger in 1998 also brought a double success when Gianluca Vialli guided the Blues to two trophies within four months of his appointment as player-manager

The Italian took charge in February after Ruud Gullit was dismissed following disagreements on a new contract which coincided with a dip in form which threatened to derail our season.

Vialli’s reign began with a memorable 3-1 win over Arsenal which sent us through to the League Cup final where he swapped his playing kit for a smart suit as we beat Middlesbrough 2-0 after extra-time to lift the three-handled trophy for the second time.

More glory followed in the Cup Winners’ Cup where we came from two goals down to beat Vicenza in the semi-finals before Gianfranco Zola’s thumping strike gave us a 1-0 win over Stuttgart in the final.

JT’s first senior game: At the age of 17, John Terry made the first of his 717 appearances for the Blues when he came on as a substitute in our 4-1 win over Aston Villa in a League Cup third-round tie on 28 October 1998.

1986 – Wembley classic

It may not have generated too much interest during its seven years of existence but the Full Members’ Cup had an inaugural final to remember in 1986 when Chelsea met Manchester City at Wembley.

In front of a crowd of 67,000, the Blues fell behind early on but David Speedie levelled midway through the first half before makeshift striker Colin Lee struck to give us a 2-1 half-time lead.

The Blues pulled away after the interval with Speedie bagging two more goals to complete his hat-trick before Lee added his second to put us 5-1 up as the game entered its closing stages.

However, our shaky defence nearly threw it away as City scored three times in a manic last five minutes with Doug Rougvie scoring an own goal and Mark Lillis netting twice before time thankfully ran out on our opponents.

Warming up in Baghdad: When exceptionally cold weather caused the postponement of three consecutive matches in February 1986, the Blues briefly escaped the frigid conditions in the UK with a mid-season trip to Baghdad for a friendly against the Iraq national team which ended in a 1-1 draw.

1974 – The East Stand rises

Stamford Bridge had a bold new look at the start of the 1974/75 season as our new state-of-the-art East Stand was opened to fans for the first time.

The impressive three-tiered cantilevered structure stood in stark contrast to the rest of the aging facilities at the Bridge but the high cost of building it as the UK slipped into recession caused financial turmoil which resulted in the sale of our best players as we slid towards relegation that season.

But while it took the club a long time to recover from the effects of the costly renovation, the East Stand has aged well. Nearly half a century on from its opening, it has been extensively refurbished and modernised and now melds quite seamlessly with the other three stands in our modern arena.

It remains the heart of the stadium and houses the dressing rooms and dugouts, matchday media facilities, family seating and hospitality areas.

Sexton departs: After leading Chelsea to glory in the FA Cup in 1970 and the Cup Winners’ Cup glory a year later, Dave Sexton’s seven-season managerial reign came to an end in October 1974. Ron Suart replaced him in a caretaker role before Eddie McCreadie took charge later that season.

1962 – Chopper checks in

Chelsea’s 1-0 home win over Sheffield Wednesday on 24 February 1962 was significant for a couple of reasons.

While it proved to be our final victory of the 1961/62 season as we went winless in our last 11 league games and dropped out of the top flight for the first time since 1930, it also marked a new beginning as a 17-year-old Ron Harris made his first senior appearance.

Nicknamed ‘Chopper’, the tough, uncompromising and yet talented defender became a pillar of the Blues back-line for the next two decades and proved to be an inspirational leader as he captained the club to success in the FA Cup and Cup Winners’ Cup.

A true Chelsea legend, he eventually made 795 appearances from 1962 to 1980 to set a club record that is never likely to be bettered.

Building back stronger: Tommy Docherty was unable to save Chelsea from relegation in his first season as manager but the Scot revived our fortunes in the old Second Division in 1962/63 as his youthful charges won 12 of 14 matches from September to Boxing Day to go six points clear at the top. While our form dipped in early 1963, we still secured immediate promotion back to the top flight.