John Obi Mikel

A defensive midfielder who signed for Chelsea in the summer of 2006. A highly rated talent throughout his youth, John’s early career took him to South Africa and then to Norway, where his performances for Lyn Oslo earned rave reviews and interest from bigger clubs.

Incredibly robust and strong, he anchors a team well and has a good range of passing, but can sometimes flatter to deceive. John has made over 200 appearances for the Blues and had arguably his finest career performance in the 2012 UEFA Champions League final against Bayern Munich.

He remains a key part of Nigeria’s international squad, and was a member of the team that completed the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations in third place, but was unable to turn out for the Super Eagles in the 2010 World Cup finals, missing out due to a knee injury.