OPTA JURY: CLAUDE MAKELELE
"For me he is one of the best, if not the best playmakers in the world" enthused Ranieri about his new signing. Makelele joined the Blues after three successful seasons at Real Madrid where he was considered by many observers to be the most important part in their team of superstars. Former coach Vincent Del Bosque described Makelele as "Real's most important player last season," although the French international left the Bernabeu in acrimonious circumstances to move to Chelsea.
At Stamford Bridge, Makelele has been relatively unaffected by Ranieri's renowned tinkering with the side, featuring in all but one of Chelsea's league games since he joined. He wasted little time in adapting to the English game and quickly made a mark in the Premiership. Only two players have made more passes than the Frenchman in the league this season, while only Roy Keane is able to boast a better passing accuracy from midfield.
Similarly, Makelele's ball winning skills have been very evident. Dietmar Hamann is the only regular midfielder to have won a higher percentage of tackles than Makelele's 78%.
However, despite establishing himself in the Premiership, Makelele hasn't necessarily been able to match the high standards he set for himself in La Liga last term. The former Celta Vigo, Marseilles and Nantes man quickly commented on the faster pace of the English game and he has been unable to match the passing accuracy he had achieved in Spain.
His tackle success rate has improved considerably in England but the he is making tackles less frequently now than he was last season. Defensively too, Makelele was far more involved for Real last season than he has been for Chelsea.
One area of improvement is with discipline. Chelsea's number four has conceded far fewer fouls this term and as a consequence has been cautioned only twice in the Premiership compared to a total of 14 bookings in his previous two seasons.
| | 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 |
| Team | Real Madrid | Real Madrid | Chelsea |
| Minutes On Pitch | 2735 | 2,516 | 1,887 |
| Goal Attempts | | | |
| Goals | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Shots Attempted | 6 | 2 | 4 |
| Shooting Accuracy % | 33% | 100% | 25% |
| Passing | | | |
| Goal Assists | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Total Passes | 1,827 | 1,656 | 1,385 |
| Pass Completion % | 85% | 86% | 83% |
| Defending | | | |
| Tackles Made | 112 | 129 | 94 |
| Tackles Won % | 62% | 67% | 78% |
| Blocks | 15 | 14 | 8 |
| Clearances | 27 | 45 | 27 |
| Interceptions | 15 | 31 | 16 |
| Discipline | | | |
| Fouls | 71 | 76 | 32 |
| Yellow Cards | 8 | 6 | 2 |
| Red Cards | 1 | 0 | 0 |
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