Chelsea have had their fair share of disaster signings over the years, especially when it comes to strikers.
The first striking catastrophe of Roman Abramovic’s era at Stamford Bridge was Adrian Mutu. The Romanian forward was let go after only a season in Southwest London for a breach of contract where he tested positive for cocaine, not that it had helped his poor form at the Bridge anyhow.
Next there was Mateja Kezman. Kezman had an almost unprecedented goalscoring record in Holland, where he notched 105 times in 122 league games for former side PSV, the kind of form that prompted the Blue’s to splash a fair bit of money for his services. Just like Mutu however, one poor season and he was gone, off to Atletico and never to return.
‘Don’t forget Shevchenko!’ came a cry from the Tavern’s corner. ‘Nor Pizarro!’ came another shout. The mention of Fernando Torres tipped the Blue’s fans over the edge. Beer everywhere ….
Now while it may be easy to ridicule Chelsea for the absurd amount of money spent on underperforming strikers, lest not forget that Abramovic and Co. have made a fair few smart moves over the years too.
One of those would certainly be current frontman Diego Costa, who has become a fan favourite at Bridge during his thus far two year tenure at the club.
Chelsea and incoming manager Antonio Conte will be searching the summer transfer window for a strike partner for the talismanic Spain international, but how life would be oh so simple if they could rewind the years and pick one of these FIVE?
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PRESS THE IMAGE BELOW TO SEE THE FIVE FORMER STRIKERS!
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Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink
Once Chelsea’s record signing – costing the Blues £15 million back in 2000 – Hasselbaink went on to become a club legend and was totally adored by the Stamford Bridge faithful.
His traction engine type foot (thank you Alan Partridge) guided him to the 2000/01 Golden Boot, the second of his career having won it previously with Leeds only two seasons prior.
Eidur Gudjohnsen
It was nearly a decade ago that Gudjohnsen left Chelsea for Barcelona, yet the Icelandic forward is still banging in the goals and is set to fly to France for Euro 2016 at the ripe old age of 37.
While Iceland’s top ever scorer didn’t have a bad scoring record for the Blue’s – having scored 54 times in 186 appearances – it was his creativity and ability to feed others that impressed most.
Didier Drogba
Chelsea’s greatest ever player according to the fans, and perhaps the club’s most important too. 164 goals for the Blues, but always will be remembered for one above the rest, the penalty that won Chelsea their first ever Champions League.
The Ivorian had a terrific habit of turning up on the big day, scoring 9 Cup Final goals during his tenure at the Bridge. Widely regarded as one of the best ever to grace the Premier League.
Nicolas Anelka
Another Golden Boot winner for the Blues, Anelka is to Costa what chalk is to cheese. Calm and collective, the Frenchman was often criticised for his apparent lack of effort.
However, Anelka had a Berbatov-esque class about him, always seeming a step of two ahead of his opponents and sometimes his counterparts.
Sometimes used as a winger, the former Arsenal and Liverpool forward was always at his best playing through the middle.
Demba Ba
Maybe not a choice many would go for, but I for one – as well as a number of other Chelsea fans – was a big admirer of Ba during his short tenure at the club.
And not just because he was part of the moment that encapsulated Steven Gerrard’s downfall as a Liverpool player, but because he was a real hidden gem.
When given the chance, Ba was almost always a threat. Big, strong and a fine finisher, it is no wonder the Senegal International is linked with a move back to the Premier League this summer.
