Chelsea have had a number of Spanish players over the last number of years.
The arrival of Saul Niguez from Atletico Madrid during the summer made him the 14th Spanish player to arrive at the Stamford Bridge-based club.
Albert Ferrer, who had won just about everything going during his time with hometown team Barcelona, became the first Spanish player to feature for the London club.
Ferrer had won five league titles and two Spanish Cup crowns as well as the European Cup and Cup Winners’ Cup during his eight-year stay with the club.
In west London, Ferrer won the FA Cup in 2000 and was part of the team that qualified for the first time for the Champions League.
Chelsea then signed little-known Quique De Lucas, who was nothing more than a bit-part player during his time.
Then came Asier Del Horno. The left-back played a key role as Chelsea retained their Premier League crown in 2005/06, starting 25 matches. He however left after just a single season.
In 2011, three more Spaniards joined Chelsea and were part of the team that won the Champions League the following year.
First up was Juan Mata, who arrived from Valencia. He lived up to expectations and was the chief-in-creator for the Blues, winning Chelsea Player of the Season in the two full seasons he was at the club.
He also formed a deadly trio consisting of Oscar and Eden Hazard, before he was eventually let go, joining Manchester United in the process, a move that was never welcomed by the club’s fans.
Fernando Torres was another Spaniard to join the London club. Having shone for Liverpool in the Premier League, Roman Abramovich made the move to take him to Stamford Bridge, forking out £50m in January 2011.
He never hit similar levels to those he managed at Liverpool but will be remembered for that single goal against Barcelona at the Camp Nou as Chelsea went on to win the Champions League in 2012.
Then came Cesc Fabregas in 2014. A lot can be written about the former Arsenal and Barcelona midfielder.
He found a home in the Chelsea midfield, creating a fierce partnership with yet another Spaniard in the name of Diego Costa.
Together, they won the Premier League title in what was Mourinho’s first season in charge – in his second spell.
In total, he helped the Blues win two Premier League titles, the FA Cup and League Cup.
There was also Alvaro Morata, who arrived from Real Madrid in a big-money move. He started his career in London well, before fizzling out at some point.
He was later sold to Atletico Madrid before he found his way to Juventus, where he shone while on loan from his parent club, Real Madrid.
Currently, Chelsea have four spanish players; Kepa Arrizabalaga, Cezar Azpilicueta, Marcos Alonso and Sagul.
Here’s the list of all Spanish players to feature for the Blues.
- Albert Ferrer
- Quique De Lucas
- Asier Del Horno
- Juan Mata
- Fernando Torres
- Oriol Romeu
- Cesar Azpilicueta
- Diego Costa
- Cesc Fabregas
- Pedro
- Marcos Alonso
- Alvaro Morata
- Kepa Arrizabalaga
- Saul
How good was Diego Costa at Chelsea?
Can you name every Spaniard to have played for Chelsea? ??
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) October 28, 2021
