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#1 Kurt Zouma (on-loan at Everton)
Kurt Zouma is the final player who makes this list. The 24-year-old French international fell victim to a ruptured cruciate ligament injury in 2016 after a bright start to his Chelsea tenure.
After needing time and crucially, patience to recover fully from his injury, he joined Stoke on a season-long loan deal to earn more top-flight minutes in a low-maintenance environment. His excellent defensive performances were not enough to help the Potters avoid relegation to the Championship, though he earned a step-up in quality with another loan move in Europe-chasing Everton on deadline day last summer.
He settled in quickly at Goodison Park and has asserted his credentials as one of the first names in the starting eleven under Marco Silva's guidance. A brilliant reader of the game, the centre-back is certainly back on track to become one of the league's best defenders and although Everton are eager to keep hold of him on a permanent move - similar to Romelu Lukaku's deal five years ago - there is no clause to make his move a permanent one.
That plays out very well in Chelsea's favour, moreso if the transfer ban is actually enforced as the potential first-team departures will free up defensive spots for Zouma to compete there next term.
