Several of the successes achieved by Chelsea sides down the years were built upon a solid defence. Many of those backlines contained an inspirational leader and captain who led the club to glory, others included exceptional footballers who could make an impact at both ends of the pitch.

And as our Team of 120 vote continues, we reflect upon the contributions of 40 defenders included on our shortlist, although supporters do have the option of selecting a former blue not included below.

Remember, you have until next week to cast your vote which you can do by clicking the link or via the form at the bottom of this page!

Right-backs

George Smith

For only a £10 transfer fee, Chelsea bought approaching 400 appearances spread over one whole decade – and the right-sided complement to two club legends on the opposite flank at left-back, firstly Jack Harrow and then Tommy Law. Hugely popular with the fans for his sporting attitude and diligent defending, by the time George left the club to return to Scotland in 1932 he had played more Chelsea games than anyone.

• 370 appearances was a club record for almost quarter-of-a-century

• In 1930 he helped Chelsea to promotion, ending six years outside of the top flight

• Played over 30 games for nine seasons in a row

Peter Sillett

If Didier Drogba’s penalty in Munich is Chelsea’s most important ever scored, Peter’s at home to Wolves in 1955 must be a strong contender for second. The highest-scoring defender in our history, prior to John Terry, drilled the spot-kick home against the previous season’s top side to put the club on the brink of our first league championship in 1955. A sweet striker of the ball and a hard-tackling and dependable defender, he gave Chelsea nine years of service.

• That penalty in front of 75,000 was one of six goals he scored in that title win, including two during the turning-point match of the season, away at West Brom

• Described by legendary winger and opponent Stanley Matthews as ‘the best full-back in the world’

• Three times he played 40 or more league games in a season
  

Ken Shellito

Such was the vibrancy of Ken’s play up and down the Chelsea right flank in the early 1960s, it is widely acknowledged he would have been in England’s World Cup-winning XI of 1966 had it not been for injury that so cruelly ended his career eventually. Attacking, overlapping full-backs may have been seen in Spain or South America at the time but they were unheard of in England before Shellito on the right and Eddie McCreadie on the left began to fly forward. Stamford Bridge matches became the hot ticket in town.

• Played 34 of the 42 league games that moved a young team up into the big time with promotion in 1963

• Helped Tommy Docherty’s Blues to fifth- and third-place finishes in subsequent seasons

• Became a youth coach at the club who brought through many he later managed when in charge of the men’s first team

David Webb

One of the key signings that turned the Kings of the King’s Road side into winners, Webby brought toughness, ultra-enthusiasm and remarkable versatility to the Bridge – famously wearing every shirt number except 11 in the pre-squad number days. He even kept a clean sheet when starting in goal. Primarily a defender, his most famous moment was at the other end of the pitch when he bundled in the goal that overcame Leeds at last to secure Chelsea’s first FA Cup in 1970.

• Twice voted Chelsea Player of the Year, he fell just one short of 300 appearances for the club

• One of his best games came in defence against Real Madrid in the Cup Winners’ Cup final, a tie eventually won. He had been centre-forward during the semi-final

• Returned briefly to Chelsea in the 1990s as manager, helping to stave off a relegation threat
  

Steve Clarke

The arrival who brought to an end what had been a problem position at right-back, Clarkey made it his own for the best part of a decade and was enterprising on the ball before eventually switching to central defence. Bright, ultra-consistent and calmly one of the leaders on the pitch, the signs were clearly there of the coach and manager he would become.

• Reward for sticking by the club through some tough times came at the end of his playing days with the FA Cup won and then in his very last game, the UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup

• Named Chelsea Player of the Season in the year we ended a wait of over two decades for a major cup final appearance

• His 421 games place him in the top 10 Chelsea appearance makers

Albert Ferrer

Having been part of Barcelona’s ‘Dream Team’, the super-solid ‘Chapi’ Ferrer was recruited for Chelsea by Gianluca Vialli who recalled just how difficult an opponent the Spaniard had been for him personally. Immediately part of an unprecedentedly consistent and defensively strong Blues side, Ferrer’s limpet-like marking, tenacious tackling and experience at the highest level was vital during the club’s memorable first adventure in the Champions League.

• Helped lift Chelsea to our best league finish for nearly three decades in 1999 with only three defeats all season

• Played in the match against Real Madrid that won the UEFA Super Cup in 1998

• Never lost to champions-at-the-time Man United and played in our 5-0 thumping of the Red Devils

Paulo Ferreira

Consistency personified, the popular Paulo won every competition he contested at Chelsea, including when he hit the ground running in 2004/05 to help secure our first Premier League title in his first season. A record low for goals conceded was achieved by him and his fellow defenders. Also played at left-back and centre-back as well as his preferred right-back, he was smart, deceptively quick and hugely popular.

• Kept compatriot Ronaldo quiet when Chelsea won the first FA Cup final at the new Wembley

• After three months without a game, he answered the call and performed superbly in a huge quarter-final away tie on the way to the team winning the 2012 Champions League

• Remained part of the backroom team for many years after he ended his playing days
  

Branislav Ivanovic

His blood-filled boot should be displayed in the Academy declared Jose Mourinho after Branislav had played through the pain to head an extra-time goal against Liverpool and send Chelsea to a cup final. It was the sign of a champion and the hallmark of the Serbian defender’s career – popping up with crucial goals to add to his determined defending on the right or in the middle. A key component of the 2010 Double-winning side and although missing out on the final, massive in our run to Munich in 2012.

• Redemption for the pain of being suspended against Bayern came gloriously 12 months later when he looped in the winner in the Europa League final against Benfica

• Played all but a few minutes of the whole 2014/15 title-winning campaign

• Announced himself on the Chelsea stage with two Champions League goals at Anfield, eventually ending up with 34 from 377 appearances

Cesar Azpilicueta

Just how many can claim to be a more reliable player for Chelsea? When Azpi lifted the FIFA Club World Cup so soon after the Champions League trophy and UEFA Super Cup as our captain, he was truly able to say he had won it all with the Blues. Whatever he was called upon to do in our defence – whether on the right, the left or in the centre – he rarely put a boot wrong. No wonder he was a Chelsea Players’ Player of the Year.

• In the second of his two Premier League title wins, 2016/17, he played every minute of every game

• His 508 appearances is a record for an overseas player at Chelsea and our sixth highest overall

• Thirteen major cup final appearances is also a club record

Reece James

One of our own who progressed seamlessly from FA Youth Cup winner to Champions League winner in just three seasons, Reece’s rise has taken him to the Chelsea captaincy. Sweet ball striking and solidity, tremendous technique and composure, and a cross capable of causing pandemonium, he has all the qualities needed to dominate on the Blues’ right or in other positions when called upon.

• A dramatic equaliser against Ajax made him Chelsea’s youngest-ever scorer in the Champions League

• Proven to be a reliable taker of high-pressure penalty shoot-out kicks

• Return to the side this season was marked in style – with a stunning last-minute free-kick against Bournemouth which was voted Chelsea Goal of the Month

Left-backs

Jack Harrow

One of the great club servants from the pre-war and between-the-wars years, full-back Jack was a ‘one-club man’ who served on the training staff after he retired in 1926. While on the pitch, he was as famous as any Chelsea player at the time despite his position on the pitch. Our first to reach 300 appearances, he would have tallied up far more than his eventual 334 had it not been for a four-year break due to the First World War.

• Even while on military duty he managed to skip off and play games at Stamford Bridge under a false name

• One of Chelsea’s first FA Cup final team in 1915

• The tough-tackler was the first Chelsea defender to play for England

Tommy Law

The successor to Harrow on the left side of the Chelsea rearguard, Tommy went on to match his predecessor for appearances while playing in the lead up to the Second World War. He maintained the tradition for great servants from Scotland at Stamford Bridge and the basis of his game was thinking one step ahead of his opponent with his positional play, and the accuracy of long balls to set his team on the attack.

• Part of the meanest defence in Division Two for two seasons running, the second of which returned Chelsea to the top flight after six years away

• One of Scotland’s ‘Wembley Wizards’ who beat England 5-1 in 1928

• Being a reliable penalty-taker contributed to his 19 goals, an impressive total for a full-back in that era
  

Stan Willemse

Legendary winger Tom Finney described South Coast-born Stan as the hardest defender in the game – but one he admired because he was fair. The left-back in our 1955 championship-winning team and a former Royal Marine, he certainly revelled in no one getting past him and no right winger of the day looked forward to a visit to the Bridge.

• As well as being an iron-hard defender, good in the air, whose commitment was never in doubt, he was an accomplished passer too and a crowd favourite

• Played 36 of the 42 games in our first title win

• Also stood in as an emergency forward and scored at Old Trafford

Eddie McCreadie

At the dawn of Tommy Docherty’s colourful time in charge, Eddie Mac was his first signing and from that moment onwards, our automatic choice at left-back for more or less the next decade. Crucial to our tactics with his energy up and down the flank, and to the side’s resilience in standing up to the physical intimidation of the time, he became the fifth Chelsea player to pass the 400-game mark and at the time, his Scotland appearances were the most caps earned by anyone while a Chelsea player. Having been signed for just £5,000, one of the great value-for-money players.

• The ultra-reliable full-back was deployed as an emergency centre-forward in the first leg of the 1965 League Cup final, and he did not disappoint with an incredibly long solo run and goal on a muddy pitch which ultimately proved the winner in the tie

• Played in every round at the peak of his form in the triumphant FA Cup campaign five years later

• Became a hugely popular young Chelsea manager who led an even younger team to promotion
  

Joey Jones

To win the Blues fans round so soon and so emphatically having been detested as a Liverpool player and sent off on your Chelsea debut takes some doing, but Joey did it – which is the measure of the man’s passion and endeavour. Signed when doubts about commitment hung heavily over a struggling team, he was anything but half-hearted and as the side around him was rebuilt brilliantly, the Wales international paid a big part in a rise from the lower reaches of the Second Division to the top six of the top flight.

• Started all but eight of 42 games as we won our first Second Division championship

• His pre-match ritual of getting the Chelsea support fired up was loved by fans and helped win him cult-hero status

• Voted Chelsea Player of the Year in 1983

Tony Dorigo

The player who brought an end to what had been a problem position in the 1980s, Aussie-accented Tony supplied extreme pace and a great recovery tackle to the left side of the Chelsea team. He remained popular and won the vote for our Player of the Year in a relegation season, and he was one of the main men when the Blues immediately bounced back up in style.

• Scored a goal in the record-breaking 1988/89 promotion season with a run from well inside his own half at closest challenges Man City

• Also netted the only goal in a Wembley final – with a superb free-kick to win the ZDS (Full Members’ Cup) against Middlesbrough

• The only Chelsea outfielder selected for the England squad at Italia ’90

Graeme Le Saux

It took a return four years after he first left for Chelsea to see the best from the best left-sided English player of his generation. Soxy had been discovered playing Channel Islands football and when he came back to Stamford Bridge, his explosive play and will to win was an important addition to a team now regularly challenging for honours and high league finishes.

• Won his first Chelsea trophy when the League Cup was lifted at Wembley in 1998, although injury denied him a place in the Cup Winners’ Cup final that soon followed

• A highlight of his first Chelsea spell was single-handedly taking apart Tottenham’s former England defender Terry Fenwick in a cup quarter-final

• In Claudio Ranieri’s first game in charge, away to Manchester United in 2000, Le Saux at his best helped set up all three goals in a 3-3 draw and dramatically cleared a Man United shot off the line
  

Wayne Bridge

The hero of Highbury 2004 was bought not to score goals, as he did so dramatically that night, but instead to be the left-back in the new-look Blues side shaped by a huge spending spree in the summer of 2003. He was the new player used the most in his debut season and his second yielded a Premier League winner’s medal, even though he was forced to miss the final months with a broken ankle.

• Will always be celebrated as the scorer of the late goal that knocked Arsenal’s ‘Invincibles’ out of the Champions League and ended our long run of frustration against the Gunners

• Started both the League Cup final against Arsenal and FA Cup final against Man United in 2007 as Chelsea swept up both domestic knockout trophies

• Stood in up front for an injury-hit Blues in a cup semi-final at Wycombe and scored our goal

Ashley Cole

Ash would feature high in any nominations list for English football’s greatest-ever left-back, let alone Chelsea’s, and the medals are there to back it up. With a Champions League win in 2012 and a Double two years earlier among so many triumphs, the Londoner was remarkably error-free in his play which was superbly balanced between attacking thrust and defensive diligence.

• Scored during the penalty shoot-out in Munich that crowned the Blues champions of Europe

• Arrived at Chelsea with three FA Cups to his name already and then surpassed that haul here, with his final total of seven triumphs in the competition an all-time record

• Over 300 Chelsea appearances, yielding nine trophies
  

Marcos Alonso

Who would you rather have stealing unnoticed on the left-hand side of the penalty area when the ball is dropping nicely for a volley at goal? Or lining up to take a free-kick just outside the area and favouring a left-footer? Marcos not only brought a significant goalscoring threat to his time on the flank, he was perfect for the wing-back role when the Blues caught fire under Antonio Conte to win our most-recent league title.

• Played 30 times and scored six goals in that 2016/17 championship win

• Netted iconic late winners against both Tottenham and Arsenal and in total scored six of his 29 Chelsea goals against those London rivals

• Part of the side that kept a clean sheet and beat Manchester United in the 2018 FA Cup final

Central defenders

Harry Wilding

The first to call the Chelsea centre-half position his own for more than a couple of seasons, Harry emerged from the First World War with the Military Medal and having initially played up front, for most of the 1920s he was a hard rock in the middle of our defence, with ability with the ball at his feet to match his dominance with his head.

• Top appearance maker in his second season, missing only two games all season

• Over 250 appearances to his name

• Boosted by his time at centre-forward, he netted 25 times in a Chelsea shirt

Allan Craig

The next after Harry Wilding to really nail down the centre-half spot as his own, Craig is another in the long line of Chelsea Scots and had won the league and become an international in his homeland. A tall player for the age, he focused purely on his defensive duties and nullifying the opposition centre-forward, but he brought a touch of class to the way he went about his work at Stamford Bridge.

• Played in front of the 82,905 record crowd at the Bridge in 1935

• Captained the side for several seasons in the top division

• With 211 appearances to his name, it would have been more but his career was curtailed by the Second World War

John Harris

Picking up the baton from Allan Craig, Johnny had been a guest player for Chelsea during the conflict and captained the side in two wartime cup finals at Wembley – our first appearances at the stadium. When full-on football resumed, he continued as an influential leader on the pitch and one of the club’s most famous faces in the period when the underachieving Pensioners evolved to become the trophy-winning Blues.

• A central defender for many years, he ended his Chelsea days as a full-back and played until close to his 39th birthday

• Not as skipper anymore, but he played in all but 11 games as we won the league title for the first time in 1954/55

• Eleven years of service yielded over 350 games

Stan Wicks

After Ted Drake returned to his old club of Reading to acquire the big defender, Stan had to be patient and wait a year for his debut but from that point onwards, he came to be seen as the signing that turned Chelsea from contenders to champions. His arrival in the side came midway through 1954/55 and revitalised a season that ended with Chelsea top of the pile for the first time. Extremely good in the air, he also had plenty of ability with the ball on the ground and could create for the team as well as keep opponents at bay.

• Post his debut, the team won 10, drew five and lost two league games up to being crowned champions, having lost seven and drawn seven prior to Wicks’ introduction

• A league ever-present in the ‘55/56 season that followed

• Regretfully, his career was ended by injury just over a season after winning the league

Ron Harris

Will anyone ever beat 795 games for Chelsea? Chopper doesn’t think so – and who would argue with him! The iconic hardman skippered his team to the club’s maiden successes in the FA Cup and European Cup Winners’ Cup at the start of the 1970s and having been part of our youth revolution in the 1960s, towards the end of his career he was the wise old head and legs in a fresh-faced promotion side.

• His record appearance total was accumulated during 19 seasons of sterling service

• A versatile defender, he moved from centre-back in the first game to right-back in the replay of the 1970 FA Cup final, significantly reducing the impact of Leeds star man Eddie Gray

• Played every league game of a campaign on no less than four occasions
  

John Dempsey

One of the ‘four assassins at the back’ as Peter Osgood called them, Demps was part of the steady bedrock on which one of the most flamboyant Chelsea sides ever was built. Formidable in the air, he helped tame Leeds United to win the FA Cup for the first time but it was scoring a goal any of his team-mates would have been proud of, in another final, that was his career high.

• That famous strike came during a finally balanced European Cup Winners’ Cup final replay in 1971 – a blistering volley into the Real Madrid net

• Only two played more in the epic 1969/70 season when the Blues won the FA Cup and achieved our best league finish since 1954/55

• Following a move to play in America, he was voted the NASL’s Defender of the Year ahead of Franz Beckenbauer

Micky Droy

Impossible not to notice, our colossus at the back became one of the most-recognisable features of Chelsea during a difficult time. Micky often was called upon to hold our defence together during an era when Chelsea had plenty of defending to do. At 6ft 4, he was dominant in the air and made the most of his long legs in the tackle. He was also not afraid to get the ball down on the often-dreadful pitch, play a bit and power forward.

• Having emerged during the 1970/71 season, he featured in the semi-final of the victorious Cup Winners’ Cup campaign in only his third game

• Went on to play in the next 13 seasons

• Named Chelsea Player of the Year in 1978
  

Colin Pates

A homegrown who came through when the club was at low ebb, Patesy was a defender more cultured on the ball than many of the era. He gave 10 years of service and was handed the captaincy midway through the wonderful promotion season of 1983/84. The south Londoner continued to lead the team in the two high-achieving years that followed back in the big time.

• Called upon to play in midfield in the early part of his career, he made a big impact marking Graeme Souness in a famous giant-killing of Liverpool in 1982

• Ever-present during two seasons, including the famous ‘83/’84 Second Division championship campaign

• During one weekend in 1986, he scored the winning goal at Southampton on the Saturday and then lifted the Full Members’ Cup after winning at Wembley on the Sunday

Graham Roberts

When freshly relegated Chelsea decided more steel and winning experience was needed in key areas of the pitch, for the defence they turned to a man who called his autobiography Hard As Nails – saying plenty about his playing style. However, Robbo’s bulldozer tackling was allied with the passing ability and willingness to bring the ball forward you would expect from someone who had played midfield earlier in his career. He captained a Chelsea side that cruised to promotion with record-breaking points and goals and then initially performed strongly back in the top division, although for both ageing and contractual reasons his time at the club came to an end.

• Played all 52 games in the 1988/89 season

• In the league games in that promotion-winning campaign, he scored 15 goals

• Thirteen of those were lashed in from the penalty spot - a club record for a single campaign

Paul Elliott

A statement signing as Chelsea were aiming to re-establish ourselves as a top-flight force with the dawn of the Premier League on the horizon, Paul had just won Scotland’s Player of the Year before his arrival from Celtic and he was instantly a success with his domineering defending. Sadly, a high challenge at Anfield damaged his knee severely and a Blues career that had promised so much was over far too quickly, but not before he was Chelsea’s Player of the Year for his first season with us.

• The first player of colour to captain Chelsea in a game

• His fast start and popularity at Chelsea was boosted by scoring in his first two home games

• Post playing career, he was honoured with a CBE for his services to equality and diversity in football
  

Frank Sinclair

One of the outstanding Chelsea youth products of the latter part of the last century, Frank was thrust into the spotlight by Paul Elliott’s injury absence and was voted our Player of the Year at the end of his first full season. His determination and enthusiasm for the Blues cause bestowed cult-hero status upon him and he was ultimately rewarded with two famous trophy wins towards the end of his time at the club.

• Versatile in defence and able to use his pace to good effect when played wide, he was right-back when the FA Cup was won in 1997

• The following year at Wembley, he matched his good friend Eddie Newton in scoring a redeeming goal in a cup final after they had both earlier conceded penalties in the FA Cup final in 1994

• Sinclair’s goal was in extra-time of a League Cup final win in what proved to be the last of his 218 games

Frank Leboeuf

English football was dragging itself out of the dark ages when Chelsea fans were treated to a centre-back with the range of passing of a midfield maestro and the ability to seek out the top corner with the occasional screamer. Frank helped the Blues to a clean sheet in each of the cup finals we played with him in the team, and a request for Blues supporters to tone down their popular chant about him spawned: ‘He’s here, he’s there, we’re not allowed to swear – Frank Leboeuf!’

• Joined a silverware-starved club in 1996 and won the FA Cup twice, plus the Cup Winners’ Cup, League Cup, UEFA Super Cup and Charity Shield

• During that time there was the small matter of winning the World Cup with France

• A composed taker of penalties – including a winner deep into extra-time against Leicester in the cup run that led to Wembley 1997

Marcel Desailly

Has there ever been a better – or more suitable – nickname for a Chelsea defender than the Rock? Signed near the peak of his powers from AC Milan shortly before he lifted the World Cup with France, Marcel’s arrival and subsequent partnership with fellow countryman Frank Leboeuf helped us mount our first serious title challenge in decades. He went on to take the captain’s armband and remains one of our finest defenders.

• As a Champions League winner with different clubs in consecutive seasons, a very important player for Chelsea when we took our first steps in the competition and reached the quarter-finals in 2000

• Scored the final-day equaliser against Liverpool in 2003 when the Blues needed a draw to take us into the Champions League for a second time. We went on to win that history-changing game

• Helped nurture the young John Terry whom he identified early as his potential successor

John Terry

So famously our captain, leader, legend - JT played the third-most number of games in Chelsea history and no one can match his winners’ medal collection. The fearless and supremely natural defender was also a wonderful distributor of the ball with either foot, chest or head. These were skills honed in our youth system and then taken onto the international stage where he skippered his country on 34 occasions during his long England career.

• His 717 Chelsea games served up 15 major honours including five Premier Leagues and the Champions League

• The highest-scoring defender in Chelsea and Premier League history

• Over 500 of his Blues appearances were wearing the captain’s armband

William Gallas

Whether it be right-back, centre-back alongside the likes of Marcel Desailly or John Terry, or left-back, Willie could play each position and was on many occasions our best defender on the day in any of them. The long-legged France international was rapid too and made very few mistakes – and was prominent in two Premier League title wins and the meanest rearguard in the competition’s history.

• The team’s joint-top appearance-maker in his second season, 2002/03

• A master of being in the right-place to score close range from set-piece deliveries

• However, his most famous goal was an absolute rocket from outside the area to beat Spurs on the way to the 2005/06 title

Ricardo Carvalho

In six years at Stamford Bridge, Riccy not only confirmed his status as one of world football’s best centre-backs – he also won a stack of domestic honours as a Blue. He was smart with good anticipation, had an impressive leap for his height, and was the perfect foil for John Terry when they were paired together, which was frequently. His efforts were recognised by his team-mates in 2008 when he won the Players’ Player of the Year award.

• Included in his trophy collection are three Premier League titles, with one coming in the Double season of 2009/10

• A defender with a touch of the entertainer about him, he loved the occasional burst out of defence to join the attack

• One such advance led to the icing-on-the-cake third goal against Man United on the day the league was won in 2006

David Luiz

It was never dull at Chelsea with the flamboyant Brazilian in our defence, or for a time, midfield, and David’s gliding runs with the ball and extravagant passing, all with magnificent locks of hair flowing behind him, were a major feature of some of greatest triumphs. Those include winning the Champions League. His later return after two years in France was timed perfectly to play in a back-three role that suited him perfectly under Antonio Conte – and he was soon a Premier League winner too.

• Recovered against the odds from injury to play all 120 minutes in Munich 2012 and then blast in a penalty in the shoot-out from one of the longest run-ups ever

• Europa League final wins against other two clubs he played for, Benfica and Arsenal, were added to his trophies

• At Craven Cottage in 2013, he scored one of the all-time best long-range Chelsea goals

Gary Cahill

A January transfer window signing that truly paid off, Gaz himself admits he did not anticipate being a European champion just months after arriving from Bolton. He won a lot more than that too! The big man at the back so brilliant at being in the right place to block shots had a lot to his game and by the end, he was leading the team on the pitch to Premier League and FA Cup glory.

• Like David Luiz, he passed a late fitness test to take his place in a depleted defence in Munich and despite minimal chance to train, excelled in the 90 minutes plus extra time

• Won another European trophy a year later when his trademark block in the dying seconds prevented Benfica from forcing extra-time

• Total medal count is eight, including two Premier Leagues

Toni Rudiger

A player whose passion on the pitch was clear to see, Toni’s presence was hugely important in five different trophy wins – including that night in Porto when his last-ditch tackle to deny Man City has to be in any highlights package of the game. Excellent at one-on-one defending, he was at times given licence to be the player getting forward from the back – and he was never shy to shoot!

• In total, the FA Cup, Champions League, Europa League, UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup were all lifted with Chelsea

• Named Player of the Match when we kept a clean sheet and beat Manchester United in the 2018 FA Cup final

• Trophy-winning celebrations in the dressing room became iconic, including on crutches in Baku

Thiago Silva

As a one-year stay ended up as four, evergreen Thiago became one of our most popular players and his vast experience was valuable with an often young team around him. As cultured as would be expected from a 100-cap Brazilian international, in addition to his positional play and comfort on the ball, he was a formidable attacking threat from set-pieces. He fell in love with Chelsea too.

• Though injury forced him off during the final, his move to London served him up the Champions League he so desired. He had been brilliant in the semi-final

• Won the FIFA Club World Cup too

• Did his popularity with fans no harm by scoring home and away as the Blues did the double over Tottenham in 2021/22