While recent seasons may leave Chelsea supporters wondering about the quality of transfers arriving at Stamford Bridge, there's little doubting the Blues have been involved in some monumental ones across the history of the Premier League.
While the likes of Romelu Lukaku, Kai Havertz, Kepa Arrizabalaga, Hakim Ziyech and others may not have lived up to fees or lit the league alight like many would have hoped in recent years, Chelsea have a plethora of stars that have shaped the narrative of Stamford Bridge and England's top flight.
From the likes of Ruud Gullit and Gianluca Vialli bringing in a new Blues era, the sheer magic and iconic moments of Gianfranco Zola, a bargain Ashley Cole, big-game player Didier Drogba, a history-maker in Petr Cech, a man that has won everything in Cesar Azpilicueta to the incredible ability of Eden Hazard and irrepressible N'Golo Kante.
READ MORE: Frank Lampard, Didier Drogba, Eden Hazard - Chelsea's 10 greatest transfers of past 30 years
One man perhaps stands above all others, however. With 211 goals and 648 appearances across Chelsea's most successful period, Frank Lampard's stature cannot be questioned. Only five players have scored more Premier League goals than Lampard and all have been positioned closer to the opposition goal.
£11million may have been worth a great deal more in 2001 than it is in 2022 but even with a difficult first term in west London, a 13-year Chelsea career at the very top shows immense value. Lampard was there for a glut of near misses in the FA Cup, Champions League and Premier League, before laying his hands on almost every trophy with the Blues. He scored goals in the most pivotal games, produced emotional moments paying tribute to his mother and father, made magic against Barcelona in 2006 and brought a relentless machine-like efficiency on the pitch that showed how hard he must have trained away from it.
His departure may have caused some heartache when his contract wasn't renewed but when Jose Mourinho said 'when a player leaves to join a direct rival then the love story is over' he was wrong in the case of Lampard. The former Blues midfielder may have cruelly scored an equalising goal for Manchester City against Chelsea but the reception of supporters and embraces with John Terry and Didier Drogba are almost as pertinent.
For not being an academy product, Lampard was Chelsea during his time at the club. His signing in 2001 eventually meant he could return to help Jody Morris and learn his way as a coach with the club's youth team. It meant he could take Mason Mount on loan at Derby and it meant he could become boss in 2019. Trophies may not have followed but he was able to bring through a new generation of talent led by Mount and Reece James in the club's time of need as the transfer ban hit.
While his departure split the fanbase, supporters will always remain thankful for what Lampard has offered as a player and coach. He has offered something to the past, present and future of the Blues, to a degree that few can match anywhere across the Premier League.
What's your favourite memory of Frank Lampard at Chelsea? Let us know in the comments section below.
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