Players who played for Arsenal and Chelsea

Which footballers have played for both Arsenal and Chelsea? Moves between two of the biggest clubs in England are rare and often controversial, which makes this a favourite round in The Connection. Every player below has been checked against his career record, including loan spells.

Quick quiz: how many can you name before you look? There are 16 in our list.

Show all 16 players

Player	Country	Arsenal	Chelsea
Peter Nicholas	Wales	1981–1983	1988–1991
David Rocastle	England	1985–1992	1994–1998
Nicolas Anelka	France	1997–1999	2008–2012
Ashley Cole	England	1999–2006	2006–2014
William Gallas	France	2006–2010	2001–2006
Cesc Fàbregas	Spain	2003–2011	2014–2019
Petr Čech	Czech Republic	2015–2019	2004–2015
Yossi Benayoun	Israel	2011–2012 loan	2010–2013
Emiliano Martínez	Argentina	2012–2020	2026–present
Willian	Brazil	2020–2021	2013–2020
Raheem Sterling	England / Jamaica	2024–2025 loan	2022–2026
David Luiz	Brazil	–	–
Emmanuel Petit	France	–	–
Jorginho	Italy / Brazil	–	–
Kai Havertz	Germany	–	–
Olivier Giroud	France	–	–

Quick facts

16 players in our verified list have played for both Arsenal and Chelsea.
The most common countries are France (4), England (3), Brazil (2).
The earliest in our list is Peter Nicholas; the most recent is Emiliano Martínez.
2 players made the link through a loan spell, including Yossi Benayoun.

Test yourself

In The Connection you get two clubs and a country, and the first to name a player who links them wins the point. Try it with your mates, or take on today's daily.

Play The Connection Play The Journeyman Play The Grid

More club connections

All Arsenal players · All Chelsea players · Every club