Ranking Chelsea's 10 most valuable players this season

Here, we rank the 10 men that have played the most vital roles in leading Chelsea to a second Premier League title in three seasons.

10. Thibaut Courtois

The gargantuan shot-stopper, who Chelsea should do everything possible to keep hold of amid reported interest from Real Madrid, doesn't have as much to do on a consistent basis as his Manchester United peer David De Gea, but that shouldn't distract from the fact that he's right there in the debate over the Premier League's best goalkeeper.

Clean sheet numbers can be misleading - they're more a product of a team's defensive system than anything else - but there's no denying that the Belgian, who uses his enormous frame to both turn aside shots and command his penalty area, has played a significant role in helping the Blues blank their opponents 17 times in the league this season.

9. Victor Moses

Victor Moses probably never envisioned that he would be thrust into a right wing-back role this season, but the 26-year-old Nigerian has excelled, making the position his own. And good thing, too, because Chelsea wasn't exactly rife with options that could function in that slot and make Antonio Conte's 3-4-3 system the juggernaut it ultimately became.

"He didn’t say to me: 'Do you fancy playing wing-back?' He just put me in there," Moses said earlier this week of the move.

Good call, Antonio.

Moses has made more appearances this season than in any year since he was signed from Wigan in 2012, and after being bounced around on a trio of loan spells over the last three campaigns (with Liverpool, Stoke City and West Ham), he not only became a trusted member of Conte's squad, but established himself as a crucial one.

8. Pedro

Eden Hazard gets all the attention, and he deserves every bit of it, but let's not overlook the other diminutive winger who has been an excellent accompaniment to the Belgian, flying up and down the opposite wing.

Pedro, who, like the rest of his teammates, endured a down season in 2015-16, has been back to his buzzing best this year; his role as Hazard's assistant may seem menial, but without the little Spaniard doing his thing down the right side, opposing teams could focus their efforts almost exclusively on slowing Hazard, without worrying about being burned elsewhere on the pitch.

Pedro, with eight goals and the same number of assists on the campaign, has the individual talent to beat his man in one-on-one situations, and has pounced when teams opt to craft their defensive gameplan around Hazard.

7. Cesc Fabregas

Turns out you don't actually need to run all that much to dictate a football match.

Cesc Fabregas will never be considered the most physically gifted player around; not overly quick or powerful, the Spaniard's body has slowed down further as Father Time continues to impose his will. Thankfully for the 30-year-old midfielder, his mind remains sharp as ever. Fabregas, despite coming primarily off the bench - he's played just over 1200 minutes in the league this year - leads the Blues with 11 assists, a tally that has moved him into second place on the Premier League's all-time list.

"Cesc is a top player and a genius at football. I can talk [about him] in the same way as about Andrea Pirlo. In the same way. We are talking about a genius of football," Antonio Conte said earlier this season. "Cesc if he doesn't run 100m in 10 seconds, I can allow him this, because he's a genius with the ball. His velocity is in his mind."

6. Diego Costa

Yes, he often looks like he's about to stumble over his own feet when running with the ball, and yes, he can be a loose cannon who can't always effectively straddle the line between channeled aggression and buffoonery, but at the end of the day, Diego Costa just keeps scoring goals.

After bulging the net only 12 times last season, Costa got off to a blistering start in 2016-17, equalling that mark in just his first 20 matches of the current campaign.

Speculation over his future hasn't slowed him down - nor have rumours that Chelsea is looking to replace him with every striker under the sun, from Romelu Lukaku to Alvaro Morata.

5. Marcos Alonso

Remember when there were concerns that Marcos Alonso, who Chelsea splashed a reported £23 million to nab from Fiorentina on deadline day, would prove another costly, short-lived experiment at left-back in the mould of previous deals the Blues made for Filipe Luis and Baba Rahman?

Seems like a long time ago.

We're at the point now where it's difficult to envision Chelsea doing anything without the spindly Spaniard, such has been his importance this season. Equally adept at both ends of the pitch, the Real Madrid youth product has linked up superbly with Hazard down the left flank, helping Chelsea dominate that wing all season.

No defender has scored more than his six league goals this season, which have come via a combination of imposing (maybe illegal?) headers, instinctive finishes, and even inch-perfect free-kicks.

Money very well spent.

4. Cesar Azpilicueta

The man affectionately known as "Dave" remains, somehow, one of the most underappreciated players in the Premier League - and, arguably, in European football.

Conte's ability to implement his 3-4-3 system was in large part down to the presence of Moses and Alonso in the wing-back slots, but without the understated excellence of Cesar Azpilicueta, the Blues would have been hard-pressed to use a formation that fields three centre-backs.

The club's in-house Swiss Army knife - Azpilicueta can play full-back, wing-back and, clearly, centre-back - his multifaceted skill set bailed out Conte in a huge way. John Terry is closer to 40 years old than 30, and Kurt Zouma was coming off a torn ACL. If it wasn't for Dave, Chelsea's heralded three-man backline could have been a disaster.

3. David Luiz

The anchor.

Had you muttered that back in August, when Chelsea spent a reported £34 million to re-sign the Brazilian from Paris Saint-Germain, it would have been met with ridicule from many (misguided) fans and pundits who only view the floppy-haired defender in relation to his role in Brazil's humiliating 2014 World Cup loss to Germany.

Now, it's simply greeted with appreciative nods.

Luiz, 30, is the rock around which Chelsea's backline is built, his combination of athleticism (while in coverage) and passing ability (while in possession) proving integral. The central defender in a back-three needs to orchestrate; both when directing his teammates as they're defending, and when functioning as the main ball-playing option that can launch an attack.

Few do it better than Luiz, who has silenced his critics this season. Hopefully for good, this time.

2. N'Golo Kante

No Chelsea player is a better on-field representation of Conte's insatiable, energetic character than N'Golo Kante.

Crowned PFA Player of the Year after another season in which he was a one-man wrecking crew in midfield, the indomitable Frenchman gobbled up countless opposition attacks, tackling everything in sight and serving as the engine at the heart of an otherwise immobile group; playing alongside either Nemanja Matic or Cesc Fabregas, Kante was tasked with an enormous amount of work, and never looked incapable of handling it.

It's no coincidence that Kante, whose 3.4 tackles per 90 minutes are second in the league, has now hoisted consecutive Premier League titles.

1. Eden Hazard

The poster boy for Chelsea's revival.

After basically taking an entire season off, the Belgian has been back to his silky, explosive best this year, his dribbling skills and inventiveness powering Chelsea's attack down the left wing - and, at times, through the middle as well.

His fifteen goals and five assists pop off the page, as do his 4.2 successful dribbles per 90 minutes - second in the league to only Wilfried Zaha (4.4) - and his 2.5 key passes. He does it all.

Conte's system has, among other things, gotten the very best out of the 26-year-old, who reminded everyone why he has often been categorized alongside Neymar as the "next one" in contention for the Ballon d'Or throne once Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo step aside.

Make no mistake: influential as Kante is in the middle of the pitch, it's Hazard who Chelsea could least afford to be without.

(Photos courtesy: Reuters)