Chelsea’s Monday recap: Ballon d’Or, Club World Cup and more!
2. Ballon d’Or results
Chelsea was the most represented club at the award ceremony on Monday with a plethora of players being recognized for their successes. Managers Thomas Tuchel and Emma Hayes were also in attendance (remotely) as they cheered on their superstars on the world’s biggest stage. While the Blues didn’t “bring home” any individual silverware (unless bronze finishes count), it was still amazing to see these talented players get recognized for their achievements.
Starting with the men’s side of things, Chelsea had five players finish inside the top 30 for Ballon d’Or voting. Captain Cesar Azpilicueta kicked things off for the night with his joint-29th place finish (on par with Luka Modric). While this doesn’t look impressive on paper, it’s nice to finally see the captain earn some recognition for his accomplishments over the years. Azpilicueta is not a flashy player, but he seemingly always gets the job done. The next to feature on the list was the reigning Chelsea Player of the Year, Mason Mount. Mount earned a top 20 finish for the first time in his career, sitting at a fitting 19th place. Suffice it to say, there is more to come from Mount, who will likely become no stranger to attending the Ballon d’Or ceremony. Now Blues striker Romelu Lukaku finished 12th in the voting for his efforts for Inter Milan and Belgium over the last season.
The remaining two players had been touted to win the award over various points of the last few months. While neither took home the Ballon d’Or—which needs to just rename to the ‘Annual Lionel Messi Trophy’ at this point—they still represented the highest Chelsea finishers in awhile. N’Golo Kante came in fifth following a wildly successful Champions League campaign that included numerous Man of the Match awards in the knockout stages. Furthermore, Jorginho finished third. This may be disappointing to many, but for an award that favors goalscorers, rounding out the top three is incredible for a defensive midfielder. Kante and Jorginho obviously did the club proud.
The aforementioned Blues weren’t the only ones to be recognized on the night either. Five of the Chelsea Women finished on their respective Ballon d’Or shortlist. This is arguably more impressive considering the women’s list was narrowed down to just 20. Skipper Magdalena Eriksson was the only nominee not to finish in the top 10. Super Fran Kirby kicked off the Blues’ nominees at No. 10, coming in right before teammate Jessie Fleming, who finished in the ninth spot. The brilliant attacking duo of Pernille Harder (seventh) and Sam Kerr (third) earned high finishes for their incredible seasons.
It goes without saying all of the nominations at this year’s ceremony are only the beginning. The Blues have a brighter future at both the men’s and women’s levels than perhaps any other club in world football. Many of these individuals will be back again next year, hopefully with their nights ending with a golden ball in hand.