Chelsea are two times champions league winners therefore nobody should be saying Chelsea isn't a big team. Not many teams have won more trophies than Chelsea. Just because they were going through some difficult times doesn't mean they're not a big club. An example is Manchester United, they have been awfully recently but still a big team...
Anyone who will rate Chelsea as an average or small club probably just started watching football games recently because how will you rate Chelsea as a small club. Chelsea as a football club is 120 years old and in these years they have achieved so much to be rated as an elite club and their reputation speaks volume.
The truth is many people forget about history or don't take their time to go through history that's why they judge with the present, Chelsea is a big team in England they're one of the most successful team not just in England but in Europe for a decade now, Chelsea have won almost all the European trophies i think all not almost and they've been in the EPL for many years and even used to challenge the great Manchester United during their victory days...
People have short memories in football — they see a bad season or two and suddenly start calling Chelsea a “small club,” which is just ridiculous. This is a team that’s lifted the Champions League twice, won the Europa League, dominated the EPL in the mid-2000s, and consistently gone toe-to-toe with Europe’s elite.
Sure, United’s history is longer and they’ve had more sustained dominance, but that doesn’t erase what Chelsea have done in the last two decades. You don’t just luck into all those trophies — they’ve beaten the best of the best, multiple times, on the biggest stages.
If anything, Chelsea’s “down years” are still better than what many so-called big clubs manage in their good years. Form is temporary, but big club status.... That’s built on history and silverware — and Chelsea’s cabinet is stacked.