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Chelsea’s Monday recap: Ballon d’Or, Club World Cup and more!

By Gabe Henderson

The Ballon d'Or award is displayed prior to the 2021 Ballon d'Or France Football award ceremony at the Theatre du Chatelet in Paris on November 29, 2021. (Photo by FRANCK FIFE / AFP) (Photo by FRANCK FIFE/AFP via Getty Images)
The Ballon d'Or award is displayed prior to the 2021 Ballon d'Or France Football award ceremony at the Theatre du Chatelet in Paris on November 29, 2021. (Photo by FRANCK FIFE / AFP) (Photo by FRANCK FIFE/AFP via Getty Images) /
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LONDON, ENGLAND – AUGUST 14: Edouard Mendy of Chelsea during the Premier League match between Chelsea and Crystal Palace at Stamford Bridge on August 14, 2021 in London, England. (Photo by Sebastian Frej/MB Media/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND – AUGUST 14: Edouard Mendy of Chelsea during the Premier League match between Chelsea and Crystal Palace at Stamford Bridge on August 14, 2021 in London, England. (Photo by Sebastian Frej/MB Media/Getty Images) /

Chelsea’s uninspiring draw with Manchester United was only allowed to dominate the headlines for a few hours. The Blues dropped points in the title race—albeit staying afloat at the top of the table—on Sunday to a mediocre Red Devils side, but that didn’t seem to matter for long. The Ballon d’Or ceremony stole the show on Monday, as did numerous interesting developments surrounding the club. It’s a day Chelsea supporters have been waiting for since May and it delivered its fair share of newsworthy content.

Therefore, let’s dive right in. Here is the Blues’ busy Monday recap:

1. Miscellaneous awards

The Ballon d’Or is obviously the big award of the night, but there were also numerous other accolades to be handed out at the ceremony. The most criminal act on the night was Gianluigi Donnarumma winning the Yashin Trophy. For those who don’t know, the Yashin Trophy is awarded to the world’s best goalkeeper for the previous year. No offense to Donnarumma, who is a superb goalkeeper with an undoubtedly bright future in Paris, but he did not deserve the award. Chelsea goalkeeper Edouard Mendy—who was somehow left off the Ballon d’Or 30-man shortlist—was snubbed. Mendy’s numbers were simply spectacular last season en route to helping the Blues capture their second Champions League crown. The unfortunate reality of the situation is the individual awards are seemingly a popularity contest. Donnarumma is younger and more well-known, so he always had the edge over the Senegalese shot-stopper.

Elsewhere, on a more positive note, Chelsea became the first club to receive a new award being handed out this year. The Blues were named the inaugural “Club of the Year” after massive success on both the individual and team levels. Chelsea had 11 players nominated for all of the awards during Monday’s ceremony—including five men and five women on their respective Ballon d’Or shortlists. Furthermore, the Blues became the first club to have both their men’s and women’s teams play in a Champions League final during the same season. This just goes to show that unlike the Yashin Trophy, this award’s winner was not controversial in the slightest.

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