Terry, Lampard, Drogba: The Greatest ever Chelsea All-Time XI
Terry, Lampard, Drogba: The Greatest ever Chelsea All-Time XI: Chelsea has become a footballing superpower since 2003 with the takeover of Roman Abramovich and are now one of the biggest and well-known clubs in English football history.
With an impressive trophy haul in their 116-year history, containing 6 League titles, 2 Champions Leagues, 8 FA Cups, 5 League Cups, 2 Europa League, 2 Cup Winners Cups, 2 Super Cups and 4 Community Shields to their name.
Even before the arrival of Roman Abramovich, Chelsea produced an abundance of great players throughout their history.
From the likes of Peter Osgood, Dennis Wise and Marcel Desailly, Chelsea have seen some of the most lucrative and special players come through the doors of Stamford Bridge
With that in mind, here is a look at Chelsea All-Time XI:
Terry, Lampard, Drogba: The Greatest ever Chelsea All-Time XI
Petr Cech
Fun Fact:
Petr Cech dived the right way for each one of Bayern’s five penalties in the shootout in 2012. pic.twitter.com/CmD1ppE92F
— Tom Overend (@tovers98) February 23, 2020
A bargain buy from Rennes at just £7 million in the summer of 2004, under the stewardship of Jose Mourinho, Petr Cech became a Chelsea and Premier League iconic during his time at the West London club.
One of the main reasons why Chelsea won their first Champions League in 2012, saving an extra-time penalty from Arjen Robben, he went on to stop another two spot-kicks in the shootout.
He went on to win four Premier League titles, four FA Cups, three League Cups and the Europa League during his spell at Stamford Bridge while holding the record for most clean sheets in the Premier League with 202 in 443 appearances.
Standing at 6 foot 5 inches tall, Cech had everything to his game during his 11-year stint at Chelsea. Strong in the air, a great-shot stopper and possessing great distribution, the Czech international is easily on this list.
Ashley Cole
On this day: 2006 – Ashley Cole made his @ChelseaFC debut. #CFC #Chelsea pic.twitter.com/TNfvDpWCEe
— Chad ⭐⭐ (@ChelseaChadder) September 9, 2021
The greatest left-back to ever play for Chelsea and to ever grace the Premier League, Ashley Cole deserves all the recognition he gets.
After controversially leaving Arsenal in 2006, Cole went on to make 338 appearances for the west London club, scoring 7 and assisting 38 in his 8-year stint.
His decision to leave Highbury for Stamford Bridge was justified, with the defender winning the Premier League, Champions League, Europa League, League Cup and Four FA Cups.
The complete full-back, Cole is now retired and works as an academy coach at Chelsea’s Cobham Training Centre.
John Terry
Do you know that John Terry holds the record for the Premier League’s most successful captain of all time? He won the title 5 times as captain. pic.twitter.com/jWOvZ8RIQH
— MR KEMS (@mr_kems4) April 24, 2020
Arguably Chelsea’s greatest ever player, John Terry was a world-class central defender during his 19-year spell at Stamford Bridge.
One of the few academy graduates to make a name for himself at the club, Terry is ‘Mr. Chelsea’, becoming their greatest ever captain in their golden era from the early 2000s.
A consistent starter in his mid-30s, Terry made 717 appearances for the club, becoming their all-time leading goalscorer as a defender with 67 goals, he is also the Premier Leagues top-scoring defender with 41 goals.
He went on to lift five Premier League titles as captain, five FA Cups, three League Cups, one Europa League and a historic Champions League win.
Ricardo Carvalho
CHELSEA REWIND: On this day in 2004 Chelsea signed Ricardo Carvalho from Porto for £19.85m. ✍️
Premier League 🏆🏆🏆
F.A Cup 🏆🏆🏆
League Cup 🏆🏆What a great player! 🇵🇹🔥 pic.twitter.com/lH10Wf3xPC
— Chris Wright 🏴 (@chriswrightzz) July 27, 2021
Bought in for £20 million in the summer of Mourinho, Carvalho was part of the Porto team that captured the Champions League under Mourinho’s stewardship back in 2004.
He came into partner John Terry that season, and in doing so became an instant success. Creating one-off (if not) the greatest central defensive partnership in Premier League history.
While Terry had the leadership and qualities you would assign with a top defender, Carvalho had the speed and on-the-ball talent to accompany Terry wonderfully. Being part of the spine that conceded 15 goals in the 2004/05 Premier League season.
He went on to win three Premier League titles, three FA Cup’s and two League cups in his six years at the club.
Cesar Azpilicueta
On this day in 2013, Chelsea signed Cesar Azpilicueta for £7m British Pounds…
🦁 432 appearances
🎯 53 assists
⚽️ 14 goals🏆🏆 2x Premier League
🏆🏆 2x Europa League
🏆 1x League Cup
🏆 1x FA Cup
🏆 1x Super Cup
🏆 1x Champions LeagueNow that's what I call a bargain. pic.twitter.com/QIhMT2mV6k
— Uber Chelsea FC ⭐️⭐️ (@UberCheIseaFC) August 24, 2021
Signed for a low £7 million in the summer of 2012 from French outfit Marseille, no one could have imagined the club legend status Spanish defender Cesar Azpilicueta would possess in 2021.
Referred to as ‘Dave’ by Chelsea fairs upon his arrival, Azpilicueta has become the beating heart of this current Chelsea team, he has made 442 appearances for the club.
Still a main figure in the current Chelsea set-up, he has held the captaincy after John Terry’s departure in 2017, captaining the side to their most recent Champions League win in May 2021.
A clutch player in his own right, scoring 14 goals and assisting 56 in his 9 years at the club, he has won almost everything there is to win.
Claude Makelele
Claude Makelele @ChelseaFC:
1️⃣4️⃣4️⃣ #PL appearances
3️⃣4️⃣2️⃣ tackles won
🏆🏆 #PL titles pic.twitter.com/oQGrbqdcE8— Premier League (@premierleague) January 11, 2017
One of the few players to have a position named after him, ‘the Makelele role’ has become synonymous in England and across Europe.
The key defensive port to Mourinho’s first spell in charge at the club, the Frenchman provided energy and world-class tackling to let the likes of Lampard and co ponder forward.
Leaving Real Madrid in 2003 after they embarrassingly allowed him to leave because of their Galactico’s policy. Makelele found a home in Chelsea that respected his talents.
He went on to win two Premier League titles, the FA Cup and two League Cups during his five years at Stamford Bridge, becoming a legendary figure amongst Blues supporters.
N’Golo Kante
N’Golo Kante has been nominated for the 2021 Ballon d’Or. #CFC pic.twitter.com/YWu6bcZ1Fa
— CFCDaily (@CFCDaily) October 8, 2021
Signed in the summer of 2016 after being an integral part of Leicester City’s unlikely title victory in the 2015/16 season.
The little Frenchman has gone from an unknown player to one of the greatest Chelsea and Premier League player’s of all-time after his unique performances for the London club.
Gifted with unlimited stamina and an engine for days, Kante’s greatest attribute is his excellent ball-winning skills in the middle of the park.
The World Cup winner has won two Premier Leagues (one with Leicester) an FA Cup, Europa League, Super Cup and most recently, a Champions League to add to his lucrative trophy cabinet, where he played a big part in his side’s victory.
Frank Lampard
On this day in 2017, Frank Lampard announced his retirement after turning down several offers!
266 Goals and 179 Assists in all competitions & Chelsea's all time top-goal scorer!
What an amazing career he had💙 pic.twitter.com/Z0irUCuIBg
— Nouman (@nomifooty) February 2, 2021
When you think of Chelsea’s greatest ever player, the name of Frank Lampard will normally come to mind for many Chelsea fans.
A fan favourite within the Stamford Bridge faithful, Lampard signed for the Blues from West Ham United in 2001 for a relatively low £11 million.
Greeted with scepticism upon his arrival, Lampard well and truly proved doubters wrong, becoming one of the best midfielders of his generation.
Becoming Chelsea’s all-time leading goalscorer with 211 goals accompanied with 150 assists in 648 appearances for the club.
Mainly deployed as a box-to-box midfielder, he was a complete and intelligent player whose greatest strength was running from deep and getting on that final pass to score or assist.
He won three Premier League titles, four FA Cups, two League Cups, a Europa League, a Champions League and finished 2nd in the 2005 Ballon D’or rankings in his 13-year career at Chelsea.
Eden Hazard
Eden Hazard on Chelsea: "I have won the Premier League and the title in France. Now all the big players want to win the Champions League." pic.twitter.com/ErkSAHB6UM
— Squawka News (@SquawkaNews) September 11, 2017
Easily Chelsea’s most gifted player, Eden Hazard lit up Stamford Bridge when he signed for the Blue’s in the summer of 2012 for £32 million from Lille.
Wowing fans on his debut, the Belgian’s entertaining playing style and world-class dribbling made him a fan-favourite with Chelsea fans and one of the best players in Europe.
Becoming Chelsea’s talisman with his performances and goal contributions, he adapted quickly to the demanding style of play in England, becoming the most fouled player in all top 5 European leagues.
In his seven-year stay at Stamford Bridge, the magician that was Hazard contributed to 110 goals and won six major honours, including two Premier League titles, an FA Cup, a League Cup and a dazzling performance on his final game to capture the Europa League for the club.
Didier Drogba
Didier Drogba's Chelsea records:
◉ Most goals in UCL
◉ Most goals in a PL season
◉ Most goals in FA Cup Finals
◉ Most goals in EFL Cup Finals
◉ Most goals + assists in a PL seasonThe King. 👑 pic.twitter.com/2XF0QXfnvc
— Squawka Football (@Squawka) November 9, 2021
Regarded by many Chelsea fans as ‘The King of Stamford Bridge’, striker Didier Drogba joined from Marseille in a £24 million deal in 2004, becoming a big-part of Chelsea’s first league title in 50 years, perfecting the target man role under Jose Mourinho.
Never seen a prolific goalscorer, Drogba proved to be the man for the occasion, with 10 goals in 10 finals, along with numerous goals in crucial games, proving his worth in his 9-year stint in west London.
The highlight of his Chelsea career was his iconic role in Chelsea winning their first European cup, scoring an 88th minute equaliser against Bayern Munich and scoring the winning penalty to seal his place in Chelsea history.
Contributing to 251 goals in 381 games. Winning four League titles and FA Cups, three League Cups and the Champions League. World-class in his day, the Ivory Coast forward cemented his place as Chelsea’s greatest ever striker.
Gianfranco Zola
25 years since Gianfranco Zola joined the Blues, what's your favourite memory of the little magician? 💙 pic.twitter.com/6KOWVhK2h0
— The Chelsea Echo (@TheChelseaEcho) November 8, 2021
The little Italian genius is the only player on this list to have not been signed during the Abramovich era.
Joining from Parma in 1996 for £4.5 million, Zola was the main element of what was seen as a revolution of sorts during Ruud Gullits and Gianluca Villa’s stints at the club.
Winning two FA Cups, a League Cup, a Super Cup and a Cup Winners’ Cup during a domestic surge of the 1990s at west London. Zola was voted Chelsea’s greatest ever player back in 2003.
A hugely influential figure at the club, with the only shame being that Zola was not part of the success that followed at Chelsea upon his departure in 2003, leaving after seven years of service.
Terry, Lampard, Drogba: The Greatest ever Chelsea All-Time XI
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