Radamel Falcao and Chelsea's Premier League History with the No. 9 Shirt
One's subscription to superstition, myth and/or the supernatural notwithstanding, they must admit something peculiar exists about Chelsea's No. 9 shirt.
For investigative purposes, before the Premier League, we must examine the days of muddy pitches and reckless challenges—back when football "was played by men," your grandfather might say.
Chelsea Football Club, from 1905-1992, had a largely successful crop of No. 9 wearers. Shirt numbers were not regularly fixed to a name—as they are today—but, by and large, the holders were the same.
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The Blues' three standouts are Roy Bentley, Peter Osgood and Kerry Dixon. Scoring 150, 150 and 193 goals in their respective Stamford Bridge careers, the trio are unquestioned club legends.
Dixon left Chelsea after the 1991/92 campaign. The old First Division ended that season, with the new Premier League starting from 1992/93.
Not coincidentally, Chelsea's No. 9 woes began immediately thereafter.
Tony Cascarino: 1992-94
Two fantastic spells at Gillingham and Millwall in the 1980s put Tony Cascarino on the map. Playing for Aston Villa and Celtic before his Chelsea move in 1992, many earmarked the Ireland international for similar success. It never materialised.
He left London for Marseille in 1994.
**EPL appearances: 40
EPL goals: 8
Mark Stein: 1994-96
Taking Cascarino's No. 9 shirt after his Ligue 1 departure, Mark Stein—who had scored 13 goals in 18 Premier League appearances the season before—proceeded to spiral downwards. Manager Glenn Hoddle's 1996 departure effectively ended the South African's Chelsea career.
It was one that started with promise but petered out once he changed numbers.
EPL appearances: 32
EPL goals: 8
Gianluca Vialli: 1996-99
Hoddle left Stamford Bridge to manage England. Chelsea's then-owner, Ken Bates, somehow convinced Ruud Gullit to take over his London side. Rejuvenating the squad, in a string of largely Italian signings—including Gianfranco Zola and Roberto Di Matteo—the Dutch player/manager bought Gianluca Vialli from Juventus.
Though not a disaster, Vialli was never going to display his blistering Serie A form in his early to mid-30s.
EPL appearances: 58
EPL goals: 21
Chris Sutton: 1999/2000
Bates sacked Gullit in February 1998, and Vialli was appointed player/manager. The "player" was removed from his title before the 1999/2000 season, and that summer, Chelsea bought former Blackburn Rovers centre-forward Chris Sutton for £10 million.
In what can only be described as "woeful," the one-off England international was an utter disappointment—he lasted just one season after his eight-figure move.
EPL appearances: 28
EPL goals: 1
Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink: 2000-04
"The exception that proves the rule."
Bought from Atletico Madrid for a then-club record of £15 million, Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink—behind Didier Drogba—is Chelsea's best-ever Premier League striker.
Showing his impeccable combination of pace, power and finishing, the Dutchman was the consummate centre-forward—winning the 2000/01 Premier League Golden Boot.
EPL appearances: 136
EPL goals: 70
Mateja Kezman: 2004/05
Leaving SW6 with manager Clauido Ranieri in summer 2004, Hasselbaink and his boss were replaced by Mateja Kezman and Jose Mourinho respectively. Chelsea's new manager was terribly successful—his first No. 9, however, was not.
Kezman was a superstar with PSV Eindhoven, scoring 105 times in 122 Eredivisie outings, but that form did not translate to the Premier League. He was gone after one season.
EPL appearances: 25
EPL goals: 4
Hernan Crespo: 2005/06
Replacing the Serbian in Mourinho's team was Argentinian legend Hernan Crespo, one of Serie A's most feared and reputable centre-forwards. The then-28-year-old was thought to be the perfect foil for Drogba's powerhouse style after returning from a loan spell with AC Milan.
Crespo's natural talent was evident, but he was never able to settle in the Chelsea set-up.
EPL appearances: 30
EPL goals: 10
Khalid Boulahrouz: 2006/07
Bought from Hamburg SV for £8.5 million, Khalid Boulahrouz was ruined by an already stellar defence. John Terry, Ricardo Carvalho, Ashley Cole and Paulo Ferreira were firm options ahead of the Dutch defender. Even when injuries occurred to preferred options, Mourinho had occasion to start midfielder Michael Essien at centre-back.
Why he wore the No. 9 shirt still remains a mystery.
EPL appearances: 13
EPL goals: 0
Steve Sidwell: 2007/08
A free transfer in 2007, Steve Sidwell was largely undone by Mourinho and Abramovich's falling-out in September of the same year.
Signed by Mourinho to bolster the midfield, once the Portuguese resigned from his Stamford Bridge post, interim manager Avram Grant had no particular loyalty to the Englishman. He left Chelsea after just one season.
EPL appearances: 15
EPL goals: 0
Franco Di Santo: 2008/09
A victim of Chelsea's managerial merry-go-round and extensive loan system, Franco Di Santo's Chelsea career was never given a chance to materialise. Given the No. 9 shirt by Luiz Felipe Scolari, the Brazilian manager was sacked and replaced by interim manager Guss Hiddink, who was followed by Carlo Ancelotti.
Di Santo never received a proper opportunity past 2008/09 and currently plies his trade with Schalke 04.
EPL appearances: 8
EPL goals: 0
Vacant: 2009/10
Chelsea won the Premier League.
Fernando Torres: 2011-2014
After all of Chelsea's tribulations, one might have expected the following once Fernando Torres donned the blue No. 9 shirt, but no such foresight was lent.
The Premier League's second-largest transfer at £50 million from Liverpool, the Spaniard was expected to replace Drogba in Chelsea's striking hierarchy but was incapable of matching both the expectation and exorbitant transfer fee.
Possibly the greatest transfer blunder in football history, lasting images of Torres missing the open goal vs. Manchester United will forever haunt whomever elects to sport Chelsea's No. 9 shirt.
He was meant to break the curse; instead he confirmed its existence.
EPL appearances: 110
EPL goals: 20
Vacant: 2014/15
Chelsea won the Premier League.
Radamel Falcao: 2015/16
Chelsea have a temporary holder.
Radamel Falcao—only on-loan from AS Monaco—is the next man willing to tempt fate. The Colombian, who had a torrid loan with Manchester United in 2014/15, has joined England's defending champions and appears Mourinho's second-choice centre-forward behind Diego Costa.
Only contracted with the Londoners for one year, it seems unlikely Falcao is the man to break Chelsea's run of poor luck.
***EPL appearances: 10
EPL goals: 1
The Future
It has been over a decade since Hasselbaink last graced Stamford Bridge.
Dominic Solanke (17), Tammy Abraham (17), Islam Feruz (19) and Patrick Bamford (21) are the Blues' current crop of young centre-forwards—some on loan, some in the academy. Could one of the Blues' in-house projects be the next great holder of their No. 9 shirt?
The law of averages says one must arrive, but it cannot predict when.
*Stats via WhoScored.com; transfer fees via Soccerbase where not noted.
**Stats are at Chelsea while in the No. 9 shirt.
***Updated after Radamel Falcao left Chelsea in June 2016.
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