Six Chelsea FC Women players have been shortlisted for the first-ever UEFA Women’s Team of the Year for 2020 and polls are open for fans to vote.
Magdalena Eriksson, Maren Mjelde, Ji So-Yun, Erin Cuthbert, Pernille Harder and Bethany England have all made the 50-player shortlist.
As in the men's poll, the women's 2020 vote invites fans to pick their strongest 11 from a shortlist of 50 of Europe's elite players – five goalkeepers, 15 defenders, 15 midfielders and 15 forwards.
The nominees are proposed by the UEFA editorial team before being validated by the Technical Observer panel on the basis of their performances in UEFA competitions and domestic competitions within UEFA member associations from January to December 2020.
The UEFA Women's Team of the Year is chosen to reflect the votes of the fans in parallel with players' achievements over the course of the calendar year, moderated by the UEFA Technical Observer panel.
Eriksson (pictured above), who is nominated in the defenders category, lifted three pieces of silverware as the Blues captain in 2020: the Continental League Cup, the Barclays FA Women’s Super League and the FA Community Shield. The 27-year-old, who has recently been voted Sweden’s Player of the Year and Defender of the Year, has also played a key part in her country's successful Euro 2022 qualifying bid.
Chelsea right-back Mjelde can also play in midfield and at centre-back and was a pivotal part of the Blues’ recent trophy success. The Norway captain earned her 150th international cap in a win against Wales last month to secure qualification to the Women’s Euros.
Cuthbert, who is still only 22 years old, has grown to be an important performer for the Blues having now surpassed 100 Chelsea appearances. The energetic attacking midfielder scored a sublime strike in our 2-0 Community Shield win over Manchester City at Wembley the start of the 2020/21 campaign.
Ji is another Chelsea midfielder who can be selected and the gifted playmaker has been instrumental to the Blues’ success. The South Korean scored seven goals last term and she was also a nominee for the PFA Women's Players' Player of the Year.
England was outstanding for the Blues last season having netted 21 goals in all competitions in our 2019/20 Double-winning campaign, meaning she finished as the Blues top scorer for a second successive season. The Chelsea No.9 also scored both goals in our 2-1 win over Arsenal in the Continental Tyres League Cup final in February 2020. The England international collected countless accolades for her performances throughout the season, including being named the Barclays FA Women’s Super League Player of the Year.
Harder, who joined us from Wolfsburg ahead of this season, was voted as the 2019/20 UEFA Women’s Player of the Year for an unprecedented second time. She was also named as the Women’s Champions League Forward of the Season following her magnificent campaign in the European competition when she captained her former side to the final. The goalscorer won her fourth domestic Double in the Frauen Bundesliga last term, while finishing as the league’s top scorer with 27 goals, which was the highest by any player since 2010. Harder has scored two goals in nine appearances for the Blues so far and she has also skippered Denmark to the Women’s Euros, which will be held in England in 2022.
Chelsea supporters can select the six Blues in their final XI here, with prizes up for grabs for all those who enter, including tickets and travel to next year’s Champions League final. Voting closes in January.