It would not be wrong to say that Chelsea changed the face of the transfer market completely in the early 2000’s under the new ownership of the Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich. Since his takeover, Chelsea have consistently signed big-name players for huge amounts of fees on their way to four Premier League titles among a host of other successes.

There have been quite a few hits during this period for the Blues, but there have been equal number of misses, if not more. For every Didier Drogba they signed, there was a Mateja Kezman and an Andriy Shevchenko. For every Branislav Ivanovic, there was a Khalid Boulahrouz and a Papy Djilobodji.

With the January transfer window open, amidst all the transfer fever among the fans, we at SoccerSouls give you two of the best and the worst transfers made by current Premier League leaders in the last decade:

Best Transfers

Eden Hazard

The Belgian was being chased after by a host of top Premier League clubs when leaving Lille in 2012 but he opted to join Chelsea for a fee of £32 million and judging by his performances over the years, Chelsea would definitely feel like they got him at quite a bargain, given the current state of transfer market.

Hazard hit the ground running for the Blues, playing a crucial role in the 2012-13 as Chelsea went on to win the UEFA Europa League. He continued his great start with another excellent campaign the subsequent season when he scored 17 times in all competitions under Jose Mourinho and was the undoubted star of the Premier League title victory in 2014-15. His performances dipped last year, but now under new manager Antonio Conte, Hazard seems to have rediscovered his touch and looks determined to add another Premier League winners’ medal to his tally.

228 appearances, 62 goals, Hazard has gone on to win many individual honours in his four and a half seasons at the Stamford Bridge and looks set for much more in the years to come.

Juan Mata

Chelsea signed Juan Mata from Valencia for £23 million in August 2011 and upon his arrival, he became one of the finest creative players in the English top-flight who also chipped in goals from the midfield.

Soon he became the heartbeat of the Chelsea midfield, with everything positive in the attacking third for the Blues coming through the Spaniard. He played an important role in Chelsea’s first ever Champions League victory in his debut season along with an FA Cup, helping himself to 6 goals and 14 assists.

The following year, Chelsea won the UEFA Europa League, where again he played a pivotal role. It was Mata who set up Didier Drogba in the Champions League final from a corner the previous year, and he repeated the feat again, with Branislav Ivanovic at the end of his corner in the Europa League final. With the win, Mata, along with teammate Fernando Torres became the first-ever player to hold the Champions League, Europa League, World Cup, and the European Championships simultaneously.

Having won the Chelsea Player of the Year twice in his two seasons at the Stamford Bridge, his time as a Blue was cut-short upon Jose Mourinho’s arrival, who sold him to Manchester United in the winter window of the 2013-14 season. Despite staying with Chelsea for just two and a half years, the impact he had there makes him one of their best signings in recent times.

Worst Transfers

Tal Ben Haim

One of the strangest signings in Chelsea’s history, Tal Ben Haim arrived at Stamford Bridge in the summer of 2007 for free on Jose Mourinho’s insistence.

However, the Israeli centre-half sent a poor message to the fans, in just his second game for the Blues, when Fernando Torres made him look a fool during a 1-1 draw at Liverpool. With results not going Chelsea’s way, Mourinho was sacked and new manager Avram Grant hardly used the summer signing, leading to a rant from Ben Haim where he said, “If I knew Avram Grant was going to be the coach I would have signed for another club.”

He made only 13 appearances for Chelsea, before being sold to Manchester City in July 2008.

Fernando Torres

The signing of Fernando Torres from Liverpool, for £50 million by Chelsea in January 2011, made huge waves in the world of football. But the Spaniard did not manage to live up to the expectations and the price tag during his time at the Bridge.

Manager after manager failed to get the best out of a player as he struggled to reproduce the form that had seen him emerge as one of the most dangerous strikers during his time at Anfield. At Chelsea, he became known for missing easy chances and open goals time and again, which only added to the pressure. An important goal at the Nou Camp against Barcelona in the UEFA Champions League semi-final aside, Torres did not produce anything noteworthy.

Fernando Torres was the British transfer record when Chelsea signed him but he only managed 20 goals in 110 games. He left Stamford Bridge with a Champions League triumph, an FA Cup win and a Europa League winners’ medal. But there is no denying that Torres was one of the poorest signings for Chelsea ever.