You know that Chelsea have netted another shedload of goals when Madness’ One Step Beyond rings around the upmarket Stamford Bridge upon the final whistle. It’s a club defined by its changing managers, owners and financial state, but one thing remains constant – a steady stream of first class goalscorers in blue. With 1,545 goals between them, these are the top ten highest goalscorers in the history of Chelsea Football Club.
10. George Hilsdon – 108 goals, 1906-1912
League: 99, FA Cup: 9, League Cup: 0, Europe: 0, Other: 0
A far cry from the footballing riches currently in SW6, George Hilsdon played for Chelsea on a weekly wage of £4 after transferring from West Ham in 1906. It was a seamless switch from East to West London, scoring 76 times in his first 99 appearances for the Blues. Indeed, he netted five goals on his debut alone, setting Hilsdon well on his way to becoming the first player to reach 100 goals for Chelsea following the club’s establishment in 1905.
9. Eden Hazard – 110 goals, 2012-2019
League: 85, FA Cup: 5, League Cup: 8, Europe: 12, Other: 0
As the only wide player on this list, Belgian wing wizard Eden Hazard notched a remarkable 110 goals in a Chelsea shirt between 2012 and 2019, 85 of which came in the Premier League. Hazard tormented defences following his £32 million move from Ligue 1 side Lille, playing in a way which few Chelsea fans had witnessed since the days of Gianfranco Zola.
Possessing great agility, vision and skill, the winger also had goals to his game, ending six out of seven campaigns in a blue shirt with double figures in all competitions. On his day, Hazard was unplayable and rightfully staked a claim as one of the best players in world football throughout his 352 Chelsea appearances.
With four Chelsea Player of the Year awards amongst various individual accolades, Hazard’s adoring Chelsea fans held nothing against him when he opted to make a big money move to Real Madrid in summer 2019.
8. George Mills – 125 goals, 1929-1943
League: 118, FA Cup: 7, League Cup: 0, Europe: 0, Other: 0
George Mills was the most prominent goalscorer of Chelsea’s wartime era. The one-club man racked up 125 strikes in 14 years at Stamford Bridge, but is often overlooked in the club’s history books. Mills netted 22 times in the 1936-37 season, his best return in a Chelsea shirt, before scoring a hat-trick against Liverpool in August 1937 in the Blues’ 6-1 victory and surprisingly remains the last Chelsea player to have hit three goals in one match against the Merseyside club.
7. Jimmy Greaves – 132 goals, 1957-1961
League: 124, FA Cup: 3, League Cup: 2, Europe: 3, Other: 0
World Cup winning marksman Jimmy Greaves hit 132 goals for Chelsea in just four seasons – the shortest time spent with the Blues of any player on this list. When Greaves left the club with which he had rose to fame for Italian giants AC Milan in 1961, he was Chelsea’s second highest goalscorer of all time. While now residing in seventh place in the top ten, Greaves still holds the record for most goals scored in one season for the West London side with 43 in the 1960-61 campaign.
Heralded as one of the greatest English goalscorers to play the game, Greaves had all the necessary qualities of a goal-hungry poacher while also applying a level-headed finesse to his play. The fact that he is the all-time top scorer for London rivals Tottenham does little to damage his Chelsea reputation and standing, having captured the love of Blues fans upon graduating from a Chelsea youth team in which he once scored 122 goals in a single season.
5. (Joint) Peter Osgood – 150 goals, 1964-1974 & 1978-1979
League: 105, FA Cup: 19, League Cup: 10, Europe: 16, Other: 0
Having almost signed for Arsenal as a teenager, Chelsea fans were understandably excited to secure the services of then-bricklayer Peter Osgood in February 1964 after hitting 30 goals in his debut season with the Blues’ reserves. The number nine was nicknamed ‘the King of Stamford Bridge’ and ‘the Wizard of Os’ by supporters as Osgood netted 148 goals in his first spell with Chelsea.
The tall centre forward was the poster boy of Chelsea’s legendary 1970 FA Cup-winning campaign, scoring in every round as his side defeated Leeds United 2-1 in the replayed final. With the love and adulation that surrounded Osgood at Stamford Bridge, it was inevitable he would make a return to his beloved Blues after leaving for Southampton in 1974. ‘Ossie’ ended his playing career at Chelsea in 1979.
5. (Joint) Roy Bentley – 150 goals, 1948-1956
League: 128, FA Cup: 21, League Cup: 0, Europe: 0, Other: 1
Roy Bentley captained the Blues to their first ever league title in the 1954-55 season. Under the guidance of gaffer Ted Drake, the club was revolutionised – a new crest, academy set-up and training method was brought to West London, with Bentley as its headlining act.
The Englishman’s tally of 150 goals for Chelsea was unmatched at the time, including 22 in the famed championship-winning campaign. Bentley was capped by his country just twelve times but did feature at the 1950 World Cup before turning out for local rivals Fulham and QPR in the years following his stunning 8-year spell at Chelsea.
4. Didier Drogba – 164 goals, 2004-2012 & 2014-15
League: 104, FA Cup: 12, League Cup: 10, Europe: 36, Other: 2
Ivorian hero Didier Drogba is just the second overseas player to appear on this list and is also the only African to have reached 100 Premier League strikes. The celebrations, the match-winning goals, the hair, the Nike Mercurials, the personality; Drogba was the undeniable cult hero. His talismanic presence at Stamford Bridge was central to the club’s meteoric rise brought about by the arrival of billionaire owner Roman Abramovich.
Once named Chelsea’s greatest ever player in a fan poll, Drogba fired the Blues to immense domestic and continental success with 164 goals over nine seasons in London. After winning three Premier League titles, Drogba fittingly ended his first stint at Chelsea by delivering a historic Champions League triumph in 2012 with the winning penalty against Bayern Munich in the final, before returning to the Bridge in 2014 for a romantic Chelsea swansong.
3. Kerry Dixon – 193 goals, 1983-1992
League: 147, FA Cup: 8, League Cup: 25, Europe: 0, Other: 13
Chelsea’s third highest goalscorer of all-time is Kerry Dixon on 193 goals. In a depressing era for the club as they struggled to retain their First Division status in the 1980s, Dixon’s goals carried a languishing team through troubled times.
While the Blues yo-yoed between divisions, Kerry Dixon became a fans’ favourite with a promotion-clinching hat-trick against Leeds United in 1984 and a 25-goal haul in another Chelsea promotion from the Second Division five years later.
2. Bobby Tambling – 202 goals, 1959-1970
League: 164, FA Cup: 25, League Cup: 10, Europe: 3, Other: 0
In second place is Bobby Tambling, one of only two Chelsea players to reach the 200 goal mark, with an impressive total of 202 goals in just 370 matches which saw him hold Chelsea’s all-time goalscoring record for 47 years. Another promising striker brought to Stamford Bridge by manager Ted Drake, Tambling took over the goalscoring mantle from Bentley and Greaves in the 1960s.
The 1962-63 season brought about Tambling’s most successful season in a blue shirt, bagging 37 goals in 44 games.
1. Frank Lampard – 211 goals, 2001-2014
League: 147, FA Cup: 26, League Cup: 12, Europe: 25, Other: 1
With 211 goals from central midfield, Frank Lampard tops the Blues’ goalscoring charts. Having turned out for Chelsea 429 times, Lampard is a serial record holder with the joint most goals in a single Premier League match (four, on two occasions), most FA Cup goals, and most penalties scored in a blue shirt. However, Lampard was anything but a penalty merchant, with memorable long-range drives against Everton, Watford and Crystal Palace.
Adept in both penalty boxes, Lampard was the complete midfielder and dictated Chelsea’s play for 13 trophy-laden years. He hit at least 20 goals in all competitions in five consecutive seasons, including 27 in the 2009-10 campaign as Carlo Ancelotti’s Chelsea side lifted a domestic double. Adored by supporters, Lampard is arguably the most decorated player in Chelsea history and one of the greatest English footballers of all time.
