Raul Meireles made the switch to Stamford Bridge from Liverpool last August and enjoyed a fairly solid first season at the club.
The Portuguese midfielder made his debut in the 2-1 win at Sunderland and made an instant impact, supplying a brilliant pass for Daniel Sturridge to score the decisive goal.
He scored his first goal for the club in the 5-0 Champions League win against Genk, opening the scoring with a fantastic long-range strike, and went on to score six times, including memorable goals against Birmingham in Roberto Di Matteo's first game in charge and Benfica in the Champions League quarter-finals.
His ability to play a wide range of roles ensured Meireles was an important member of the squad, first under Andre Villas-Boas and later Roberto Di Matteo.
Deployed in the holding role in his first few appearances for the club, he then went on to play both on the left and right of a midfield trio, while in the home game against Barcelona he was given the specific task of playing slightly further forward but with the instruction to tuck inside when we didn't have possession.
After picking up a booking in the Camp Nou against Barcelona, Meireles missed the Champions League Final through suspension, but having already picked up an FA Cup winners' medal a few weeks prior, our European triumph ensured he ended the season with two more medals to his collection.
Appearances: 37+8
Goals: 6
Assists: 7
Minutes on pitch: 3,327
Jose Bosingwa's fourth season at Stamford Bridge is one that the player will remember fondly, and he will go down as one of the players who made history for the club after the Munich triumph.
He started the season as first-choice right-back under the guidance of Andre Villas-Boas and scored a stunning opening goal in the 3-1 win over Norwich City at Stamford Bridge, but after a fairly solid opening to the campaign, he was sent off at Queens Park Rangers in what was a fiery encounter.
With Bosingwa suspended, Branislav Ivanovic came into the side and impressed, keeping his place in the team and, for a while at least, the Portuguese had to be content with only sparing appearances, more often than not from the bench.
Late in January, he forced a last-gasp own-goal which salvaged a point in the 1-1 draw at Swansea, but his best performance of the season came in the Champions League clash at the Camp Nou, when he played alongside Ivanovic at centre-back and somehow managed to repel a constant wave of pressure from the Spaniards.
With a tough schedule in the closing few weeks of the campaign, and injuries to both Gary Cahill and David Luiz, Bosingwa was a regular starter, playing the full 90 minutes in both the Champions League and FA Cup Finals, and while he struggled at times to eradicate mistakes in his play, he made a significant contribution in the most memorable night in the club's history on 19 May in Germany.
Appearances: 36+7
Goals: 1
Assists: 4
Minutes on pitch: 3,456
Having signed from Belgian side Anderlecht last summer, Romelu Lukaku will have been aware that, with both Didier Drogba and Fernando Torres ahead of him in the pecking order, his first season at the club was always going to be a learning curve.
He made his debut as a substitute in the 3-1 win against Norwich at Stamford Bridge and went close to scoring with his first touch, before making another late appearance in the 3-1 defeat at Manchester United.
Early in the season, however, it was the Carling Cup which provided him with the platform to showcase his abilities. His first full 90 minutes for the club came in the win against Fulham, while he also featured in later rounds against both Everton and Liverpool.
In between his fleeting first team appearances, the 18-year-old turned out regularly for the reserves, and finished that particular campaign with a tally of seven goals in nine games, including a brace in a 4-2 win away to Newcastle's second string.
Back with the first team, Lukaku came on as a substitute in the 4-1 defeat at Liverpool, before starting a league game for the first team on the final day of the season against Blackburn Rovers, supplying the cross from which John Terry opened the scoring in our 2-1 win.
In what was his eighth season at the club, Paulo Ferreira proved just how important it is to have squad players who can be relied upon when necessary.
After featuring in only Carling Cup and Champions League group games earlier in the campaign, he was thrust into the action midway through the first half of the 1-1 draw at White Hart Lane in December and turned in a solid display marking the in-form Gareth Bale.
He featured in the 3-1 home defeat by Aston Villa just over a week later but wasn't used again until he was handed a surprise and rare start in the Champions League game away in Benfica. Ferreira used his maturity and big-game experience to help the Blues turn in an all-round impressive defensive display in his homeland en route to a 1-0 victory.
As the season drew to a close, he also started in the 6-1 victory over Queens Park Rangers and the 4-1 defeat at Liverpool.
The 2011/12 campaign was a mixed one for Salomon Kalou, and for long periods the player would have struggled to imagine it ending in the manner it did.
The Ivorian striker started the opening game away at Stoke and missed arguably the best chance of the game, before being withdrawn early on a week later against West Bromwich Albion at home.
It was from that point onwards matters started to take a turn for the worse for him, and for much of the first half of the season Kalou barely featured.
On the rare occasions when he was called upon, as always, he gave everything. As a late substitute up at Newcastle in December, he entered with the Blues leading 1-0 and scored the crucial second goal, before teeing up Daniel Sturridge for the third, but it still wasn't enough to earn him a regular starting spot.
However when Andre Villas-Boas was replaced by Roberto Di Matteo, the season began to take a positive turn for Kalou. Restored to the side almost instantly, his confidence grew with every appearance, and he repaid the Italian with the winning goal away to Benfica in the Champions League quarter-final.
He was a near ever-present as the games came thick and fast, and started both the FA Cup and Champions League Finals, completing the win at Wembley and playing 84 minutes in Germany.
Appearances: 16+10
Goals: 5
Assists: 4
Minutes on pitch: 1,526
Torres about last night:
The first person to call me last night and congratulate me was Didier Drogba, we’ll certainly miss him at Stamford Bridge. He said he has left something for me in my locker, and I am waiting to get back and see what is it.
Wir sind ernstzunehmende Gangster ohne Arbeit . Und Bitches .
Torres about last night:
The first person to call me last night and congratulate me was Didier Drogba, we’ll certainly miss him at Stamford Bridge. He said he has left something for me in my locker, and I am waiting to get back and see what is it.
Shit , geb doch Spoiler Alarm ! Jetzt werd ich nicht mehr schlafen können weil ich es unbedingt wissen will...
Torres about last night:
The first person to call me last night and congratulate me was Didier Drogba, we’ll certainly miss him at Stamford Bridge. He said he has left something for me in my locker, and I am waiting to get back and see what is it.
Torres about last night:
The first person to call me last night and congratulate me was Didier Drogba, we’ll certainly miss him at Stamford Bridge. He said he has left something for me in my locker, and I am waiting to get back and see what is it.
Warnung: Spoiler!
