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Ballon d’Or power rankings: Can Chelsea finally boast a winner?

By Subhrajit Chowdhury

Chelsea's Italian midfielder Jorginho reacts after scoring his penalty in the penalty shoot out during the UEFA Super Cup football match between Chelsea and Villarreal at Windsor Park in Belfast on August 11, 2021. (Photo by Paul ELLIS / AFP) (Photo by PAUL ELLIS/AFP via Getty Images)
Chelsea's Italian midfielder Jorginho reacts after scoring his penalty in the penalty shoot out during the UEFA Super Cup football match between Chelsea and Villarreal at Windsor Park in Belfast on August 11, 2021. (Photo by Paul ELLIS / AFP) (Photo by PAUL ELLIS/AFP via Getty Images) /
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Chelsea’s Italian midfielder Jorginho reacts after scoring his penalty in the penalty shoot out during the UEFA Super Cup football match between Chelsea and Villarreal at Windsor Park in Belfast on August 11, 2021. (Photo by Paul ELLIS / AFP) (Photo by PAUL ELLIS/AFP via Getty Images)
Chelsea’s Italian midfielder Jorginho reacts after scoring his penalty in the penalty shoot out during the UEFA Super Cup football match between Chelsea and Villarreal at Windsor Park in Belfast on August 11, 2021. (Photo by Paul ELLIS / AFP) (Photo by PAUL ELLIS/AFP via Getty Images) /

2. Jorginho (Chelsea)

Chelsea’s best player last season in Europe was undoubtedly Jorginho. For the first time since his arrival in 2018, the Italian maestro showed his true potential. His work as a defensive midfielder was sublime, his vision as a central midfielder was as good as ever, but his best attribute throughout the season was to dictate the pace of the game. Jorginho has the uncanny ability to stop the pace of the game and rebuild according to his will. He can control the midfield all by himself, but with a player like Kante beside him, he is unstoppable.

Not only was the 28-year-old fundamental in Chelsea’s success last season, but he was also in fact the top scorer for the Blues in the Premier League. The former Napoli man scored seven goals from the spot to take the No. 1 spot, one ahead of both Tammy Abraham, Mason Mount and Timo Werner. He is definitely made to be a leader, and it would not be surprising to see him take the captain’s armband once Cesar Azpilicueta eventually leaves the club. He is already the vice-captain of the club and his win-or-die attitude makes him a perfect player for the Premier League.

When he first came from Serie A, there was a noticeable culture shock. The PL is more fast-paced and physical, it took him some time to adjust to his new surroundings. However, last season he looked like a veteran in the league and he was not afraid to lunge into tackles, butt heads with the opposition and throw his body on the line to stop an attack from developing. His tackling has also gotten better, which is evident when evaluating the fewer yellow cards he got last season—only two, compared to his 10 in the 2019/20 season.

While Chelsea wouldn’t have won the UCL without Kante or Jorginho, the reason why the Italian manages to finish above his teammate is due to his amazing Euro 2020 campaign. Italy was the dark horse of the tournament, everybody expected it to do well, but only a few predicted them to win. Not only did the Italians win the Cup, they did so in style beating some of the biggest teams in the world in Belgium, Spain and England. Jorginho was once again instrumental for his team in the Euros, and he was often referred to as the conductor orchestrating the Italian midfield. He was, in fact, the hardest worker on the field and he covered the most distance as well (86.61 km). His penalty against Spain saw Gli Azzurri through to the finals. Even though he failed to score the winning penalty against England, he is still one of the only players to have won the Champions League, Euros and the Super Cup in the same year. Thus, he takes the second spot on the list.

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