1 Chelsea Player Whose FIFA 16 Stats Overestimate Him

What has happened to Branislav Ivanovic?

It's the question we're all asking ourselves this season; it's the question that has got the FIFA 16 programmers no doubt pulling out their hair too.

Watching his performances this season, Chelsea fans know the feeling. Ivanovic has been a far cry from the player who was a major part of the Blues' title success last term.

He helped create the solid back line Chelsea boasted last season—one that would concede the fewest goals in the Premier League en route to their title success.

Ivanovic was a rock, a dominant figure who was just as impressive in the opposition box as he was his own. Not only did Ivanovic help prevent goals, he scored six in all competitions for Chelsea in 2014/15.

Julian Finney/Getty Images

One of those came in the Champions League away to Paris Saint-Germain in February, while 10 days earlier, he scored the winner in another away fixture to Aston Villa.

His 66th-minute strike in that game gave Chelsea a valuable three points at a time when the pressure was on in the title race, leading to a stream of articles applauding his brilliance—including from this writer.

He was reliable and effective. He had a purpose.

But now he is a shadow of the man, which means his stats in the world of virtual reality are somewhat generous.

Try telling Chelsea fans who have seen Ivanovic toil this season that he is the Blues' joint-best player when it comes to his defensive attributes.

According to FIFA 16 developer EA Sports, though, he is.

	Pace	Shooting	Passing	Dribbling	Defence	Physicality
John Terry	34	47	57	52	87	81
Branislav Ivanovic	65	61	64	61	87	84
Gary Cahill	73	58	52	62	86	76
Cesar Azpilicueta	80	56	74	74	84	76
Kurt Zouma	74	54	60	56	80	82

Ivanovic is joint-first with John Terry in that regard on FIFA 16, ranked better than Gary Cahill and the ever reliable Cesar Azpilicueta.

If we take his career up to now into context, it's hardly a misjudgement from the FIFA 16 programmers. It's more a sad indictment of how Ivanovic's stock has fallen so rapidly.

In May, there would have been an argument that Ivanovic was so vital to Chelsea's cause he could be ranked alongside someone such as Terry, which his virtual stats point to.

In the here and now, however, his reputation is such that the common consensus is he shouldn't be starting matches at all.

Indeed, fans are calling for Baba Rahman to play regularly at left-back, thus allowing Azpilicueta to return to his more natural position on the right.

Julian Finney/Getty Images

Things have tumbled and got that bad for Ivanovic there are even demands from sections of the Chelsea support to play Zouma out of position on the right to cover for him.

Jose Mourinho has persevered with Ivanovic throughout this terrible run of form in which his team finds itself—Ivanovic is the only Chelsea defender to have played every minute in the Premier League so far in 2015/16—but even the manager has hinted that's more to do with a lack of personnel.

Speaking after the recent 3-1 defeat to Southampton, Mourinho discussed how he plans to field some more youngsters to freshen things up in the coming weeks but stopped short of suggesting Ivanovic will be benched.

"If I drop Ivanovic and I play Ola Aina, [the media] tell me: 'Ivanovic, he did so much for this club, he's a big personality, he has a strong mentality.' ... Even you, when you analyse and ask questions, you have that in mind."

It wasn't exactly an open admission from the manager that Ivanovic was a major culprit among his underperforming players, but Mourinho did make a valid point.

Tony Marshall/Getty Images

Save for Azpilicueta moving to the right, Chelsea don't have many options outside of that, which Mourinho's reference to the youngster Aina outlined.

Whether or not he has considered Ivanovic's position in this team, only Mourinho truly knows, but he has at least hinted at it.

If Mourinho was to pick his team on FIFA 16 stats, of course Ivanovic would start every game. In fact, he'd make the lineup for most teams.

In the real world, where it matters most, Ivanovic is struggling. Right now, his reputation—FIFA 16 or not—doesn't hold up.

Unfortunately for Chelsea, while EA Sports may have overestimated his ability, the rest of the Premier League hasn't, and the Blues have endured some long afternoons this season as a result.

Garry Hayes is Bleacher Report's lead Chelsea correspondent. All quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Follow him on Twitter @garryhayes