5. Ramires – 7.06
It showed how consistent our squad was this season, as no less than five players came extremely close to this 5th spot. Unfortunately, we can’t tell you who just yet, we will have to keep you guessing…
Ever since that vital goal against Barcelona in the Champions league Semi, Ramires has not been able to do much wrong in the eyes of Chelsea fans, and that’s is mostly because he does so much right.
He chipped in with 5 goals from the defensive midfield position, Luiz, and Mikel both played there and only managed two between them. However, it was his defensive performances that earnt him the accolades and showed how important a cog he is in the Chelsea machine.
In his 35 Premier League appearances, he managed an astonishing 112 tackles, an average of 3.2 per game. Nobody else came close to that, Oscar managed 86, but at an average of only 2.5 a game, while Azpilicueta managed 2.6 per match. Ramires shone out in the field all season. When he wasn’t tackling players, he was intercepting them. His average of 1.6 per game was 2nd best in the team, meaning nearly 5 times a game he was stopping opponents, and then forming an attack of our own with his speed and dribbling.
The Brazilian adds a dimension to the game similar to that of Yaya Toure at Manchester City, and at 26, you can see the next 2 or 3 years becoming very positive for the man, and you struggle to pinpoint many glaring weaknesses in his game.
Whoscored.com have his only weakness as crossing, he attempted 17 and completed only 3, but as a defensive midfielder, you can let him off for that, as it’s similar to having poor shot accuracy as a right back.
His best match of the season was the 2-1 home victory against Arsenal, where he managed an 8.50 match rating, with Petr Cech closest to him at 7.66. He did exactly what he managed all season, he completed 9 tackles and 3 interceptions, regaining possession from Arsenal 12 times, while Oscar was next best with just 6.
Ramires’ contributions aren’t glaringly obvious for the team, but when you big a little deeper into the stats, you can see how irreplaceable he is in the centre of midfield.
Below is a video that shows perfectly how vital Ramires is for us. From tackles, interceptions, to great assists and goals.
We will let you know who No.4 is tomorrow, any early guesses? Do you agree with Ramires at No.5?
By Brad Smith
Follow @BrummieBrad