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#3 Jorginho – Chelsea
At several points throughout the year, Chelsea’s midfield talisman Jorginho was tipped to be the player who could potentially win the Ballon d’Or. Whether he does win the sport’s highest individual award or not remains to be seen but there’s no denying that the Italian has had an immensely successful year.
Jorginho was key to Chelsea’s campaign in the Champions League last season where they ended up lifting the prestigious trophy for only the second time in their history. The 29-year-old then starred for his country in the European Championship. Jorginho added the UEFA Euro winner’s medal to his collection as Italy went on an unbeaten run and defeated England in the final of the competition.
The defensive midfielder has begun this season strongly as well. He has made 20 interceptions for Chelsea across all competitions and only Thiago Silva and Andreas Christensen have better numbers. Jorginho has also made 28 successful tackles and leads the chart in that category. He has had a success rate of 56.3%.
#2 Joshua Kimmich – Bayern Munich
Joshua Kimmich, who received a lot of flak for choosing not to get vaccinated, is now suffering the consequences of his actions. The player has tested positive for COVID-19 and is likely to miss key games against Barcelona and Borussia Dortmund as well.
This could prove to be a headache for coach Julian Nagelsmann, who will miss the services of his star player. Kimmich has been at his spectacular best for Bayern Munich this season and with 29 defensive interceptions and 17 tackles, he has been the standout ball winner for the club.
It remains to be seen whether Leon Goretzka, who has also had a decent season, is coupled with another player to make up for Kimmich’s absence in the upcoming games.
#1 Declan Rice – West Ham
Declan Rice was heavily linked with a move away from West Ham in the summer. Although it didn’t come to fruition, Rice has continued his stellar form this season.
West Ham have won seven of their 12 games this season and are just behind Chelsea, Manchester City and Liverpool in fourth position. Rice has had a massive role to play behind West Ham’s fantastic run so far. \
The 22-year-old has already cemented his spot in England's starting eleven and is the vice-captain at his club.
Rice has been the most secure defensive screen in the world and has an astounding 34 interceptions to his name this season. He has also made 31 tackles and has a combined figure of 65 balls won that isn’t bettered by anyone else in Europe.
Rice is expected to be the subject of extensive transfer activity in the upcoming summer window and West Ham might get a sizeable bid for their crucial asset in midfield.
