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Chelsea might have come into the limelight outside of Europe in 2003 after Roman Abramovich's takeover, but some of their best players played for the club before the Russian's reign.
The Blues were founded in 1905, and since then, they have had a rich history that has seen the club go up and down the ladder. Since the Roman era began at Stamford Bridge, things have been different. Chelsea have been winning trophies consistently, and investment into the club has been at an all-time high.
Today, we take a look at the top scorers in Chelsea's history:
#5 - Peter Osgood and Roy Bentley (both 150)
Peter Osgood spent the majority of his career at Chelsea and is easily one of the best players in the club's history. He scored 150 goals in his time at Stamford Bridge while playing 380 games.
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He joined the club as a 17-year-old in 1964 and was there for a decade before leaving for Southampton. He returned 4 years later for another season and then hung up his boots.
Roy Bentley is another Chelsea legend who spent most of his career at Stamford Bridge. He joined from Newcastle United back in 1948 and spent 8 seasons at the club – scoring 150 goals in that time.
He was the captain of the Chelsea side that lifted the club's first league title in 1954/55! Sadly, Roy Bentley passed away in 2018, aged 93.
#4 - Didier Drogba (164)
Didier Drogba is arguably the best signing in the Roman era. Jose Mourinho insisted on getting the Ivory Costa international instead of Ronaldinho, and Drogba showed exactly why.
"In 2004, Roman Abramovich told me he had the money and power to bring Ronaldinho to Chelsea if I wanted to. I said 'No bring me Drogba, he will build a legacy.'"
The striker joined from Marseille for a reported £24 million fee and went on to become the face of Chelsea's attack for more than 6 years. Didier Drogba scored a whopping 164 goals in his time at Stamford Bridge in 381 games.
Drogba ended his first stint at Chelsea in 2012 after scoring the winning penalty in the Champions League final shootout. He returned to the club in 2014 for another season and was a shadow of himself. Luckily, it did not impact his legacy at the club and he is still known for his first stint and the second one is all but forgotten.
#3 - Kerry Dixon (193)
Kerry Dixon was a player Chelsea chairman Ken Bates was hesitant to sign, but once the deal went through, the former showed what he would have missed out on. Joining from Reading for an initial £150,000 the Blues had to pay another £25,000 if the striker played for the national side.
The 21-year-old did well at Chelsea and spent 9 seasons at the club – scoring 193 goals and becoming the club's 2nd top scorer at the time he stopped playing. Kerry Dixon spent the majority of his career at Stamford Bridge – playing 420 games to make him 10th in the all-time appearance list for Chelsea.
#2 - Bobby Tambling (202)
Bobby Tambling joined Chelsea as a 15-year-old despite interest from Reading, Wolverhampton and Blackpool – the club he supported at that time. The teenager did not have to wait long before making it to the first team as he was handed his debut as a 17-year-old.
Tambling had an instant impact in the first team and was made the club's main striker when Jimmy Greaves left for AC Milan, 2 years later. The rest is history, as they say, as Bobby Tambling went on to become Chelsea's record scorer until Frank Lampard overtook him.
One record Bobby Tambling still holds is of the most number of goals scored by a Chelsea player in a league game. He netted 5 times in a 6-2 win over Aston Villa in 1966 and no Chelsea player has managed to equal that feat yet.
#1 - Frank Lampard (211)
Frank Lampard is arguably the best player Chelsea have ever had. The Englishman was signed from West Ham United and went straight into the first team.
The Englishman scored 211 goals during his Chelsea career in 648 games. His record is bound to remain intact for a long time.
The midfielder spent 13 years at Chelsea before he was released by the club. He went on to sign for Manchester City for a season before moving to MLS and ending his career with New York City.
Frank Lampard returned to Chelsea as a manager in 2019 and took on the project of bringing in academy products into the first team. He did not manage to win a trophy during his managerial spell and was sacked in January 2021 after a poor run of form.
