Since the days of Roman Abramovich owning Chelsea, the Blues have been prolific spenders in the transfer market. There have been some flops, such as the £50 million they spent on Fernando Torres. However, the club also spent its money wisely on players who won them the Champions League twice.
Now, under the BlueCo consortium led by Todd Boehly, Chelsea have just won the Club World Cup and were awarded £85 million for this. It remains to be seen what players the west London side will be able to bring to the club with this money. Here are the five greatest signings in Chelsea history.
5. Petr Čech - £7 million from Rennes
The goalkeeper situation is believed to be the weak link in the current Chelsea side. Although Robert Sánchez performed very well in the Club World Cup final. The Blues could do with signing a keeper such as Petr Čech.
Čech kept goal for Chelsea for 11 years and made 494 appearances for the club. He was very recognizable due to wearing a scrum cap when he was playing. The keeper had to wear this after a collision with the Reading player, Stephen Hunt.
Four Premier League titles and the Champions League were the major honors Čech won with Chelsea. He worked as an advisor for the Blues after retiring from soccer. Nowadays, Čech plays as a goaltender for Oxford City Stars in the NIHL South Division 1.
4. Eden Hazard - £32 million from Lille
After Chelsea won the Champions League in 2012, the Blues secured the services of Eden Hazard. This was a huge signing for the Blues as Hazard had also been linked with Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal, Manchester City, and Manchester United.
Hazard won two Premier League titles with Chelsea. He also scored 110 goals with 88 assists in 352 games for the Blues. This led to an £88.5 million transfer to Real Madrid. However, Hazard never lived up to expectations with Los Blancos.
3. Ashley Cole - £5 million plus William Gallas from Arsenal
Ashley Cole's transfer from Arsenal to Chelsea was marred by controversy as it led to a tapping-up scandal. However, he went on to become one of the best left-backs in the world at Stamford Bridge.
Cole won the Premier League and the Champions League with the Blues. In total, he made 337 appearances for Chelsea, scoring seven times and making 33 assists.
After Chelsea, Cole went on to play for AS Roma, Los Angeles Galaxy, and Derby County. He is now an up-and-coming coach and is the assistant to Lee Carsley with England U21s.
2. Didier Drogba - £24 million from Marseille
Didier Drogba is a Chelsea legend for his ability to step up on the biggest occasions. His goals fired the Blues to four Premier League titles and the Champions League.
Drogba had two stints at Chelsea before finishing his career in the United States with the Montreal Impact (now CF Montréal) and then the Phoenix Rising in the USL Championship. Drogba has co-hosted many of the Ballon d'Or ceremonies in recent years.
1. Frank Lampard - £11 million from West Ham United
Despite being the son of a West Ham United legend, Frank Lampard, who shares the same name as his father, never got a great reception with the Hammers. This was even when he played for the club. He then moved to Chelsea, and the abuse got worse from West Ham supporters whenever the two sides met.
Lampard went on to become a Chelsea legend with his box-to-box runs and goal-scoring ability. The midfielder scored 211 goals, with 148 assists in 648 games for the Blues. He won the Premier League three times and the Champions League with the west London side.
After his time at Chelsea, Lampard joined Manchester City and, in a twist of fate, scored against the Blues. However, he refused to celebrate when he found the net against his former side. Lampard ended his career with New York City FC in MLS before embarking on a career in management.
He started his coaching career with Derby County, whom he took to the Championship playoff final. Then he got the Chelsea job, his first season went well, as he secured Champions League qualification and reached an FA Cup final. However, he was sacked the following season after a run of poor results.
Lampard then managed Everton whom he battled relegation with before an unsuccessful stint as Chelsea's caretaker manager. He is now rebuilding his reputation with Coventry City in the Championship. However, we cannot rule him out of managing Chelsea for a third spell in the future.