The late, great Gianluca Vialli was the first to do so for us in the Premier League era, back in 1997, joining some of the most iconic players in our history who had done so prior to 1992.

Here are the stories behind the awesome foursome to do so since the Premier League's formation and you can see a full list at the bottom of this article.

Gianluca Vialli – Barnsley 0-6 Chelsea, August 1997

Owing to redevelopment work at Stamford Bridge, our opening three fixtures of the 1997/98 campaign were played away from SW6. After an opening-day defeat at Coventry City, we travelled to Oakwell to play Barnsley for the first time in a Premier League fixture.

The Blues turned on the style in front of the Sky cameras, and after Dan Petrescu and Gus Poyet had put us in control, Vialli ran riot. He notched his first just before the interval before adding a further three goals in front of the joyous Chelsea supporters in the second half. The four goals showcased his breadth of quality: a ferocious first-time finish; a header; a deft dink over the keeper; and finally a predatory close-range effort.

Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink – Chelsea 6-1 Coventry City, October 2000

Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink wasted little time adapting to the Bridge following his move from Atletico Madrid, and he further ingratiated himself to his new fans with a four-goal blitz in October 2000.

He lashed home a penalty he had won to put the Blues ahead, and doubled his and our tally before the break with a bending strike. He completed his hat-trick by converting a rebound from a saved Gianfranco Zola shot, and had time to add another, this one an expert left-footed finish. It was no surprise Jimmy Floyd finished as the Premier League’s top scorer in his debut season!

Frank Lampard – Chelsea 6-1 Derby County, March 2008

Another Midlands side bore the brunt of a brilliant Chelsea goalscorer in March 2008.

And like Hasselbaink, Lampard got things up and running with a penalty in front of the Shed. His next three goals came in the space of 15 second-half minutes: a tap-in after great work from Joe Cole, a typically pinpoint 20-yard strike, and then a clever left-footed finish.

Frank Lampard – Chelsea 7-1 Aston Villa, April 2010

Our all-time record goalscorer Lampard was at it again two years later as the Blues hit top gear en route to our third Premier League crown. Aston Villa arrived with the joint-best defensive record in the league, but were blown away by a rampant Carlo Ancelotti side.

Lampard confidently converted two penalties, both won by Yuri Zhirkov. His other two goals on a brilliant day at the Bridge were textbook Lampard: clever finishes after getting himself in the right place at the right time inside the box.

Cole Palmer – Chelsea 6-0 Everton, April 2024

Palmer’s first four-goal haul included a perfect hat-trick inside the opening 29 minutes. The first was arguably the pick of the bunch, featuring a nutmeg, cute one-two and accurate 20-yard finish past Jordan Pickford.

Then came a close-range header, and a right-footer from much further out as Palmer perfectly capitalised on a weak Pickford clearance. The only thing missing was a penalty, and that arrived in the second half on a spectacular evening in SW6.

Cole Palmer – Chelsea 4-2 Brighton, September 2024

Palmer continues to rewrite the record books. Prior to the Brighton clash at the start of the 2024/25 campaign, no player had scored four in the first half of a Premier League fixture, and on no occasion since 1992 had a Blue scored all four of our goals in a league game.

That all changed as Palmer stole the headlines one again. And again there was great variety to the attacking midfielder’s quartet: a penalty, a free-kick, and two sweet left-footed finishes. How the Shed rejoiced!

Palmer is the 16th Chelsea player to score four goals or more in a game for us. He joins Jimmy Greaves as the only player to score four times in the first half of a top-flight league fixture while a Chelsea player.

Full list of those who have scored four or more goals in a game for Chelsea:

Sep 1906: George Hilsdon 5 (v Glossop (h) 9-2 Div 2)

Nov 1907: George Hilsdon 4 (v Bristol C (h) 4-1 Div 1)

Jan 1908: George Hilsdon 6 (v Worksop (h) 9-1 FAC)

Jan 1913: Bob Whittingham 4 (v Southend (h) 5-2 FAC)

Sep 1924: William Whitton 4 (v Leicester (h) 4-0 Div 2)

Dec 1927: Jimmy Thompson 4 (v South Shields (h) 6-0 Div 2)

Dec 1934: Dick Spence 4 (v Liverpool (h) 4-1 Div 1)

Mar 1935: Joe Bambrick 4 (v Leeds Utd (h) 7-1 Div 1)

Apr 1935: Joe Bambrick 4 (v Man City (h) 4-2 Div 1)

Dec 1957: Jimmy Greaves 4 (v Portsmouth (h) 7-4 Div 1)
(At 17, he is the youngest to do so)

Aug 1958: Jimmy Greaves 5 (v Wolves (h) 6-2 Div 1)

Dec 1959: Jimmy Greaves 5 (v Preston (a) 5-4 Div 1)

Dec 1960: Jimmy Greaves 5 (v West Brom (h) 7-1 Div 1)

Mar 1961: Jimmy Greaves 4 (v Newcastle (a) 6-1 Div 1)

Apr 1961: Jimmy Greaves 4 (v Nottm Forest (h) 4-3 Div 1)

Dec 1962: Bobby Tambling 4 (v Charlton (a) 4-1 Div 2)

May 1963: Bobby Tambling 4 (v Portsmouth (h) 7-0 Div 2)

Mar 1964: Bobby Tambling 4 (v Arsenal (a) 4-2 Div 1)

Sep 1966: Bobby Tambling 5 (v Aston Villa (a) 6-2 Div 1)

Feb 1969: Bobby Tambling 4 (v Sunderland (h) 5-1 Div 1)

Dec 1969: Peter Osgood 4 (v C Palace (a) 5-1 Div 1)

Sep 1971: Peter Osgood 5 (v Jeunesse (h) 13-0 Cup Winners' Cup)

Sep 1983: Kerry Dixon 4 (v Gillingham (h) 4-0 LC)

Jan 1985: Kerry Dixon 4 (v Wigan (a) 5-0 FAC)

Feb 1989: Gordon Durie 5 (v Walsall (a) 7-0 Div 2)

Apr 1989: Kerry Dixon 4 (v Barnsley (h) 5-3 Div 2)

Aug 1997: Gianluca Vialli 4 (v Barnsley (a) 6-0 PL)

Oct 2000: Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink 4 (v Coventry (h) 6-1 PL)

Mar 2008: Frank Lampard 4 (v Derby (h) 6-1 PL)

Mar 2010: Frank Lampard 4 (v Aston Villa (h) 7-1 PL)

Dec 2020: Olivier Giroud 4 (v Sevilla (a) 4-0 CL)

Apr 2024: Cole Palmer 4 (v Everton (h) 6-0 PL)

Sep 2024: Cole Palmer 4 (v Brighton (h) 4-2 PL)