Jersey numbers are an important part of football, icons have blazed their trails all while adorned by a familiar number on their back. This time around we have a rather notorious number among fans who have developed a fear of the supposed curse that this number has brought in the last decade. Despite that, this is one of the most iconic kit numbers in all of football which is why we’ll be looking at the best Chelsea players to ever wear the number 9 jersey.
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Best Chelsea Players to Wear the Number 9 Jersey of All Time
Gianluca Vialli
While he may not be as tenured as some of the other names on this list, those who saw Gianluca Vialli will understand why he’s earned a place here. He arrived in 1996 to join a rising team helmed by Rudd Gullit and had a successful few years in blue before his retirement.
He had always been a goalscorer, particularly with Sampdoria, but his record in England was an impressive 40 goals in 88 appearances with five assists tacked on, meaning he had a goal contribution ever two games.
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Particularly impressive is that he spent some time pulling double duty as a player-manager after February 1998. He was a key part in some trophy winning teams on the pitch and off the pitch, earning him a place on this list.
Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink
Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink was an important striker for Chelsea in the early 00s. His goalscoring prowess made him an important part of the squad that eventually convinced Roman Abramovich to buy the club. For some time, he held the team record for most goal involvements in a calendar year with a crazy tally of 36 in 2001.
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Managerial changes and tactical switches eventually limited his game time and importance but he still made his mark in blue, notching 87 goals and 38 assists in just 177 matches. Totalling 125 goal involvements in 177 appearances.
Peter Osgood
He’s made a few appearances on this list already but now we’ve reached the defining kit number of Peter Osgood. One of the best to ever put on the number 9 jersey the striker was commemorated with a statue outside Stamford Bridge.
He may not have been there for the glory days but he was there to build to the glory days, helping the Blues capture the FA Cup and Cup Winners’ Cup in 1970 and 1971 respectively. He ended his career with a total of 140 goals in 369 appearances across all competitions.
While his 105 strikes in the top division were evidence of his quality, it was in knockout competitions where he really thrived, netting 12 times in 11 Cup Winners’ Cup outings and 15 in 29 FA Cup ties.
Kerry Dixon
Despite joining when the team was in the second tier of the footballing pyramid, Kerry Dixon fired Chelsea into the top tier of English football and never looked back. He scored 28 goals in his debut season to get them promoted and netted 24 in the league the next season to keep them there.
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Dixon is one of the highest-scoring players in team history with 157 strikes in 367 appearances. He added 17 assists to that tally. He will be remembered for sticking with the side through a relegation and firing them into the top division twice over the course of his nine-year stint.
Roy Bentley
Roy Bentley has possibly one of the most outstanding achievements to his name. He spent eight campaigns with the Blues and was the leading scorer in every single one. For many years he was the overall top scorer in history for the team with 150 goals, a tally that has him fifth all-time now.
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He was part of the legendary squad that won the top division title in 1955, a term in which he netted 22 times in the league to lead the team to a historic title win. They wouldn’t win the first division/Premier League again until 2005 under Jose Mourinho.
