Mason Mount has struggled to reach the same heights he reached last season, but his overriding impact at Chelsea has been awe-inspiring. Since breaking through under Frank Lampard, the 23-year-old has been central to much of the Blues' success, evolving into the side's primary catalyst.
The Cobham graduate has etched himself into Chelsea's starting eleven, regardless of the boss, averaging 72.7 minutes a game across 148 appearances. Mount frequently steps up in the big games for the west London side, directly contributing towards goals in crucial Champions League knockout round ties and clashes against Premier League title rivals.
Thomas Tuchel has admitted to the winning 'aura' that the midfielder brings to the table, making him an undroppable feature of the starting eleven for both club and country. Earlier this season, with Mount in the starting lineup, the Blues' enjoyed an 89 per cent win rate, but without him, it was just 46 per cent.
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"We know about this because it's a kind of statistic that is sometimes interesting," Tuchel said. "I first heard about these statistics in basketball in America, and the influence from one player in five against five is much higher than 11 against 11 in football.
"It's not a statistic which guarantees you to start because this would be too easy. But it is something we are aware of, and we will not deny that having Mason brings a certain attitude and an aura and a mentality on the field. It is very hard to drop him because even if he has a not so good game, you'll always get full energy and positivity and a wonderful approach."
But, despite fulfilling his boss' promise, Mount faced an outburst of criticism after having reached 20 direct goal contributions this season. Rival fans flooded social media with propaganda to discredit the midfielder's achievement, throwing eleven involvements against lesser sides under the spotlight.
Norwich
Norwich, for many sides in the Premier League, is a guaranteed six points and a chance to boost the goal difference, respectfully. Arsenal and Manchester United each recorded 1-0 wins over the Canaries this season but Chelsea found the net at least three times both home and away — so, is that Tuchel's problem or Arteta and Rangnick's?
Regardless, Mount has recorded six goals and assists against Norwich this season. In either tie, the England international directly contributed towards the opening and, ultimately, game-winning goal. I guess next time, he should hide in the shadows, waiting for a teammate to step up and ignite the game instead, right?
Middlesbrough
Gary Lineker tipped Mount to be one of the first names on Gareth Southgate's England team sheet following the 23-year-old's performance which guided Chelsea into the FA Cup semi-finals with a 2-0 victory over Middlesbrough. But, I guess a former England international is wrong because rival fans want to undermine Mount?
"He (Mount) was obviously hugely influential in both the goals. Fabulous young footballer, so consistent. He'll probably be one of the first names on Gareth Southgate's team sheet," Linker said.
The Cobham graduate recorded two assists against Chris Wilder's side and proved the Blues' driving force. Again, next time Mount should just lurk in shadows and only step up once the game is won, right?
Plymouth Argyle
One assist — just so happened to get Chelsea's foot back in the game, having gone one-nil down. Again, he performed in a pivotal moment and clawed the Blues back into a game.
Watford
A goal and an assist in a 2-1 win over Watford — a goal that put Chelsea in front before providing an assist in the second half to hand Tuchel the three points. Two massive moments which saw him step up when others didn't, but we're meant to believe that Mount's contributions this season aren't plausible?
Mount needed new haters anyway — his old haters turned into fans.
