Ranking every centre-back to play for Chelsea since John Terry left

Think of Chelsea and centre-backs and the mind inevitably conjures up images of John Terry. Their captain, leader and legend, he was a figurehead for the club in every sense throughout their most decorated era. 

Replacing him was never going to be an easy task. Befitting their status as one of England’s most successful clubs, Chelsea have had many top-quality centre-backs play at Stamford Bridge since he left in 2017. But, like an ex you can never quite get over, they’re just not John Terry.

Here, we’ve attempted the surprisingly difficult task of ranking Chelsea’s starting centre-backs since his departure from worst to best.

Guehi rose up through the Chelsea ranks and made his club debut in a League Cup match against Grimsby Town in September 2019.

He then played in a 2-1 defeat to Manchester United in the same competition but that proved to be his last appearance for the Blues. 

After spending 18 months on loan at Swansea City, the centre-back completed an £18mllion move to Crystal Palace and has since gone from strength to strength.

Given his lack of Chelsea appearances, we can’t rank Guehi anywhere other than last here. But Chelsea are probably regretting their decision to let him go.

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At 21, Ampadu still has time on his side and could rise up this list if he’s given some first-team opportunities at Stamford Bridge.

However, considering he has only made 12 appearances for the club to date, the Wales international can have no complaints about his placing on this list.

Also, the fact that Ampadu has shaved his distinctive hair counts against him – standing out from the crowd should be both saluted and encouraged, especially as Marouane Fellaini is no