I was forced to pay Chelsea millions, sucked blood from porn star and almost hit Mourinho

I was forced to pay Chelsea millions, sucked blood from a porn star, almost hit Jose Mourinho and Frank Lampard hates me Say what you like about Frank Lampard the manager, but few would question the Chelsea legend as a person. His 2006 autobiography is a testament to that reputation as a lovely bloke. There was one Chelsea teammate who Lampard did not like Lampard does not have a bad word to say about anybody – which is why his comments about disgraced ex-Blues striker Adrian Mutu jump off the page. “Scott Parker lived near Mutu at Chelsea Harbour for a while,” Lampard recalls in ‘Totally Frank’. “Scottie is the ultimate professional – never late and always well prepared – but on occasion he would travel to Harlington [Chelsea’s old training ground] with Mutu. “One morning he bumped into Mutu as he was coming out of the lift in their building. Mutu looked rough and had obviously enjoyed a good night – so good, he was just getting in. “He begged Scottie to wait for him while he got changed into his training gear… when the story leaked that he had tested positive for cocaine I wasn’t exactly shocked.” Nobody was. In fact, Chelsea took the unusual step of carrying out their own internal drugs tests on Mutu two months before anti-doping authorities found cocaine in his system. Mutu was one of the first big-money signings of the Abramovich era What followed was an ugly mess which still rumbles on 19 years later. But the rise which preceded it – and the unreached heights that were expected – makes the fall even greater. Despite his troubled career, Mutu remains the joint top scoring player in Romania’s history alongside Gheorghe Hagi – who is considered one of football’s greatest players ever – despite playing 46 fewer games. Mutu was the crown jewel in former owner Roman Abramovich’s famous Chelsea spending spree after taking over the club in 2003. He justified his price tag immediately Having signed from Parma for £15million, the Romanian immediately lived up to expectation with a long-range winner against Leicester on his debut. Weeks later, two goals in a 4-2 victory over arch-rivals Tottenham made him an instant fan favourite. Speaking to the BBC in 2020, Mutu said: “In my first year at Chelsea I worked with Claudio Ranieri, a great coach, who wanted me in the squad. “Without those personal problems, things would have been different…” The striker appeared to be a brilliant acquisition during his first season Indeed, the striker was nominated for the Ballon d’Or in 2003, but everything changed following the arrival of Jose Mourinho in 2004. As per Lampard’s autobiography, Mutu had developed a reputation for his antics off the pitch and the club became increasingly suspicious. Mourinho knew there was a problem immediately after his appointment as Chelsea manager. In fact, the Portuguese manager approached Mutu and his team with accusations of cocaine use during his first pre-season as Blues boss and ordered a drugs test, which came back negative. Mutu defied Mourinho to play for Romania, leading to a public spat Mourinho’s relationship with Mutu reached boiling point after the striker miraculously recovered from a knee injury to feature in a World Cup qualifier for Romania in early October 2004. Mutu claimed he almost hit Mourinho during a blazing row over his attitude and publicly accused the Blues boss of lying about his fitness, resulting in a £120,000 club fine. He also claimed Mourinho was marginalising him in favour of his own signing, Didier Drogba. However, ‘The Special One’ would be vindicated later that month when news emerged that Mutu had tested positive for cocaine. Mutu’s Chelsea career ended abruptly after a positive drugs test Explaining the cocaine in his system, the Romanian said: “The only reason I took what I took was because I wanted to improve my sexual performance. “It may be funny but it’s true. I did not take cocaine. I took something to make me feel good.” Mutu’s sex life was front-page news in 2004 after he was caught sucking the blood of porn star Laura Andreson. After the positive drugs test, he was banned from football for seven months and sacked by Chelsea for breach of contract, but the Blues did not stop there. Mutu developed a playboy reputation during his short time at Stamford Bridge In 2008, FIFA dished out the biggest financial penalty to a player in their history when the governing body ruled that Mutu owed Chelsea £15.2m. The former forward contested the decision for more than a decade and his latest appeal was thrown out by the European Court of Human Rights as recently as 2018. Neither side have offered an update on the dispute in five years – but speaking in 2018, Chelsea said they were still actively pursuing the damages owed to them. Despite his shame, and another drugs ban in 2010, Mutu resurrected his career at Fiorentina in 2006 after a brief spell at Juventus. Chelsea were unimpressed with Mutu’s attitude He finished his club career with more than 200 competitive goals. Mutu would have broken his nation’s goalscoring record easily if he wasn’t barred from international duty in 2013 for posting an image of manager Victor Piturca as Mr Bean on Facebook. Now 44, Mutu has launched a promising managerial career. After earning plaudits for his work as Romania Under-21s boss between 2020 and 2021, he is now in charge of Rapid Bucuresti. Mutu is a different person now His personal life appears more stable, too. Mutu married Sandra Bachici in 2016 and they have a five-year-old son. In total, he has four children after two previous marriages. Over the years, Chelsea have been questioned over their treatment of Mutu, who was 25 at the time of his drugs scandal. Ex-PFA chief Gordon Taylor criticised the Blues for making no attempt to rehabilitate their young player. Meanwhile, Mutu promises to use his experience to help the next generation. Mutu was able to salvage a career at Fiorentina Speaking in 2020, he said: “I know what happens when a player has problems with indiscipline. I’ve passed through hard moments and I came back stronger. “If one of my players happens to make a mistake I will tell them to learn from it and not to repeat it. “I came back and I played better than before, proving to everyone that the young players who have made a mistake must be helped, not judged and destroyed.” The former Tottenham star, who also notably played for Wolves, Portsmouth, Fulham and Blackpool, was discussing his experiences following reports from Chelsea. Despite his troubled career, Mutu remains the joint-all-time-leading goalscorer in Romania's history I was forced to pay Chelsea millions, sucked blood from porn star and almost hit Mourinho