This Saturday, Chelsea face Sunderland for the first time since 2017 in a fixture that, to modern fans, doesn't sound particularly blockbuster.

But don't be fooled by the lack of recent bad blood - this matchup has a dark, unlikely rivalry rooted in the brutal height of English football hooliganism back in the 1970s and 80s. What started as chaotic clashes on the terraces escalated into one of the most infamous nights of violence in 1985, where Chelsea thugs injured over 20 police officers and targeted a Sunderland player, leading to more than 100 arrests.

Astonishingly, however, Chelsea's ever-controversial chairman Ken Bates refused to ban them, opting instead to simply shuffle them further back in the stands.

The feud's origins trace back to August 1975, when Chelsea travelled north to face Sunderland at Roker Park in the old Second Division. It was the London club's first game after relegation from the top tier and they were in dire straits financially.

Over a thousand Blues fans made the trip north and caused mayhem when...