5 world-class players who dramatically declined after leaving Chelsea
Chelsea are one of English football’s most successful clubs – and plenty of big-name players have suffered dramatic declines after leaving the club.
The Premier League giants have been lucky enough to field some of the greatest players in football history, as well as several generational talents who never recovered after leaving Stamford Bridge.
We’ve identified five players who were considered world-class on their day at Chelsea but dramatically declined after leaving.
Diego Costa
Costa was absolutely brilliant as the spearhead of Conte’s title-winning Chelsea of 2016-17, scoring 20 goals to fire the Blues to their last Premier League title.
But, in a development only the most naive wouldn’t have seen coming, the snarling striker soon fell out with Antonio Conte and was shipped off to Atletico Madrid in January 2018.
He never scored more than eight goals in a season again and can now be found playing in Brazil for Gremio.
Mason Mount
World-class might be a stretch as a Mount descriptor, but the midfielder was putting up some impressive numbers for Chelsea and was instrumental in their 2021 Champions League success.
That year, which also saw Mount start for England in the European Championship final, was probably the peak of his career.
While the 2021-22 season saw him post 21 goal contributions in the Premier League, Mount’s form dipped in his final season at Chelsea and he’s been utterly unable to recapture it at Manchester United.
Eden Hazard
The remarkable thing about Hazard’s disastrous move from Chelsea to Real Madrid is that the club were able to absorb a €100million investment making next to no impact.
That would be ruinous for any other club.
During his miserable four years on their books, they won two La Liga titles and the Champions League.
That’s probably the reason that the Belgian’s big-money transfer doesn’t generate more noise as one of the worst in the history of football.
The numbers are there in black and white: 76 appearances. Seven goals. Only 12 assists. A grand total of zero appearances in El Clasico.
When you factor in wages, that’s a mindblowing amount of money down the drain – and there’s no question it’s affected the player’s overall legacy too.
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Andre Schurrle
Schurrle joined Chelsea for around £18million in the same summer that Mourinho returned to the club, enjoying a strong first season before going off to win the World Cup with Germany in 2014.
He made 14 appearances in his second season, but left halfway through after just 18 months at Chelsea to return to Germany with Wolfsburg.
The £22million fee saw the Blues make a slight profit on a player who wanted more game time.
After stints at Borussia Dortmund, Fulham and in Russia, the winger surprisingly announced his retirement from football in 2020 at the age of just 29, having become disillusioned with the game.
Nemanja Matic
Carlo Ancelotti was the man in charge when Chelsea originally signed Matic, although the Serbian midfielder only made three senior appearances before he was sold to Benfica.
After honing his craft in Portugal, Chelsea then re-signed Matic in 2014 and the rest is history.
After making over 150 appearances and winning two league titles, his return to London was a roaring success.
Despite having stints with Manchester United, Roma, Rennes and Lyon, Matic was never as effective or efficient as he was during his time at Chelsea.