Top 5 Chelsea Players in the Premier League
The 5 Greatest Chelsea Players in the Premier League Era
We’re discussing the top five players in Premier League history for well-known football clubs across England.
And in the 21st Century, that list certainly involves Chelsea, who in the Roman Abramovich era, won 19 major trophies.
They won the Premier League with Conte, Mourinho and Ancelotti and have had some of the league’s standout players over the last 20 years or so.
Here are the Top 5 Chelsea players to play for Chelsea in the Premier League.
5. Petr Cech (2004-2015)
Amassing 494 appearances for Chelsea, Petr Cech was a gold standard for goalkeepers in the 11 years he spent in West London.
Arriving in 2004 via Rennes, the Czech international made an immediate impact, winning the Premier League and League Cup double in just his first season.
Record-breaking was the theme of the 2004/05 season, as Chelsea won the title with a then-record 95 points, as well as winning the most games in a single Premier League campaign (29).
Cech also made the PFA Team of the Year in his debut season, conceding just 15 goals, a record for the least amount of goals conceded in a Premier League season.
Cech has certainly made his mark on the Premier League, illustrated by the number of records he set in his 15 years in the Premier League.
Winning the Premier League Golden Glove a record four times wasn't enough for Cech, as he is also the only goalkeeper to win it with two separate clubs: Arsenal and Chelsea.
The legacy of Cech at Chelsea is so strong that the four years spent at Arsenal at the end of his career did little to no harm regarding his Chelsea legacy and garnered him the much-loved nickname “Agent Cech”.
4. Eden Hazard (2012-2019)
While Eden Hazard is only fourth on my list, I think he’s the best footballer on this list and one of the greatest talents the Premier League has ever seen.
Hazard arrived at Stamford Bridge with much fanfare. He was 21 years old, and cost the holders of the Champions League a whopping £32 million.
The Belgian international hit the ground running, netting 13 goals in all competitions as Chelsea won the Europa League in Hazard’s debut season.
The second stint of Jose Mourinho at Chelsea in 2013 was the beginning of Hazard’s ascension to the top of English football with Hazard capturing his first Premier League title in the 2014/15 season as he was voted Premier League Player of the Season.
Hazard is one of those players that you give a free role, and tell him just go do what he does best- and on most occasions, he’d come up with the goods.
Despite an aberration of a season in 2015/16, Hazard was back to his brilliant best in his last few years at Chelsea, winning a second league title and a second Europa League title in a 4-1 win against London rivals Arsenal.
He scored in this game, and it was the last time he’d ever put on a Chelsea shirt.
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3. Didier Drogba (2004-2012) (2014-2015)
10 goals in 10 finals. I don’t even need to say his name. Didier Drogba may be the clutchest player in Premier League history.
Not only is Drogba the only player to score in four separate FA Cup finals, but he also scored the equaliser and winning penalty in a Champions League final against Bayern Munich in their own stadium… madness.
Like Hazard, Drogba was subject to high standards when joining Chelsea in a record transfer deal worth £24 million.
Alongside fellow Chelsea rookie Petr Cech, the pair won the Premier League, and Drogba went from strength to strength, winning a second consecutive league title.
While Drogba wasn't as clinical as Premier League counterparts such as Thierry Henry and Wayne Rooney, Drogba still went on to win two Premier League Golden Boots' while his overall game as a striker was on a different level.
Drogba earned 55 assists in 254 games and as a striker, that’s remarkable. It illustrates just how much Drogba offered the team when he wasn’t busy scoring goals.
The Ivorian became the first African player to net 100 Premier League goals- and what better legacy to have than to be the guy that always delivered when it was needed the most.
2. John Terry (1998-2017)
John Terry is a Chelsea boy through and through. He spent the first 19 of his 20 years as a professional footballer, and what a career he carved out at his boyhood club.
The former Blues captain is undoubtedly one of the greatest defenders to ever play the game, and in my opinion, the greatest English defender of the modern era.
For such a long time, Terry was the only academy product Cobham had produced and he definitely made them proud!
He dominated on the domestic scene, becoming the only captain to lead his club to the Premier League title five separate times, and he also made his mark in Europe.
Awarded the UEFA Club Defender of the Year award on three separate occasions, as well as his inclusion in the FIFPro World XI for five consecutive years, Terry set new standards for defending.
Terry was simply a winner. He played the game with intelligence and composure that was second to none, and that was also apparent from the amount of team and individual success Terry accrued during his career.
The Club World Cup is the only trophy Terry did not lift in his illustrious career. However, I'm not sure he cares that much, due to the embarrassment of riches Terry has in his personal trophy cabinet.
1. Frank Lampard (2001-2014)
The greatest goalscorer in Chelsea history and perhaps the greatest goalscoring midfielder ever, Frank Lampard is number one on my list of greatest Chelsea players in Premier League history.
Spending 13 years at Chelsea, Lampard was a massive factor in Chelsea’s greatest years which included four Premier League titles, four FA Cups, and two European titles including the UEFA Champions League.
Lampard set standards for goalscoring midfielders that I’m not sure can be matched, at least in my lifetime.
Frank Lampard playing for Chelsea
The former England international netted double-digit goals in the Premier League for 10 straight years, including 22 goals in the title-winning season of 2009-10, beaten to the golden boot by teammate Didier Drogba.
If it wasn’t for Ronaldinho, Lampard would have become just the fourth English player to win the Ballon d’Or, after Chelsea’s record-breaking season in 2004-05.
Arsenal immortalised a few of their club legends with statues outside the Emirates Stadium, and it wouldn’t surprise me if Chelsea replicate this idea with a few big names of their own- maybe even the men on this list!
Lampard netted 211 goals for Chelsea during his 11 years at the club. He quite rightly goes down as the greatest Chelsea player in the Premier League era.
Check out our other pieces of the Premier League’s greatest players, including Manchester United and Liverpool.
