The £575, 000 signing of Sheffield United's Vinnie Jones in August 1991 provoked a mixed response from Chelsea's followers. The notorious midfield hard man had many detractors and his assertion prior to his debut that 'We've got a few boys here who will be useful if it all goes off in the tunnel' was the cause of much squirming. The fact that he won over the doubters so quickly, and so fully, bears testament to the fact that when he let his feet do the talking, he was no mean player. Vinnie made an outstanding debut at home to Luton on the last day of August and set up the opening goal for Graeme Le Saux in a 4-1 victory. His willingness to interact with the supporters made him a firm favourite on the terraces and before every game, home or away, he would respond to the chant of 'Vinnie, give us a song' by putting his finger to his lips for silence and then belting out the first strains of the old Chelsea favourite One Man Went To Mow. He opened his goal scoring account for the club in mid-September with a header which broke the deadlock in a 2-0 win over Aston Villa and a month later he scored in a 2-2 draw at home to Liverpool. When he wasn't leading the Chelsea choir during warm-ups, he could often be found throwing himself around between the sticks and he finally got the opportunity to show what he could do in the number one shirt when Kevin Hitchcock was sent off at Sheffield Wednesday with The Blues 2-0 down. Vinnie acquitted himself well but was beaten once in what was eventually a 3-0 defeat. In February 1992 Chelsea travelled to Liverpool having failed to record a single League victory at Anfield for 55 years. Prior to the kick-off, the cantankerous Vinnie and Dennis Wise took a marker and scribbled 'We're Bothered' over the famous 'This is Anfield' sign in the players' tunnel. They then went out and scored a goal apiece, Vinnie striking with a spectacular 25-yard volley, as The Blues clinched a famous 2-1 win. The same two players had scored the goals to defeat Hull City as Chelsea embarked on a lengthy FA Cup run and in the fifth round, Jones faced his former side Sheffield United. Incredibly he was booked after just two seconds for an awful lunge. The Blues triumphed 1-0 but Vinnie was suspended for the quarter-final against Sunderland and was much missed as Chelsea stuttered to a draw. He returned for the replay at Roker Park and set up a late equaliser for Wise with a delightful pass but Sunderland scored again to win 2-1. In August 1992, three games into the new campaign, Jones scored at Hillsborough to set up a stirring Chelsea comeback from 2-0 down to draw 3-3 with Sheffield Wednesday but this was to be his last goal for the club. His final game was a 2-1 defeat at Anfield in September. After a hugely eventful and enjoyable year in SW6, he returned to Wimbledon later that month for £640, 000. (Kelvin Barker)