If his 26 appearances in 2008/09 hinted there was an accomplished Premier League player in Branislav Ivanovic, then his 41 in 2009/10 confirmed the presence of a top-class defender in our ranks.
For a while the Serb was a frontrunner in voting for our Player of the Year award, and although he eventually lost out to Didier Drogba, he joined the Ivorian in the PFA Premier League Team of the Season.
That was in spite of beginning the campaign as a reserve, and while no professional will delight at seeing a team-mate injured, the chance presented to him when Jose Bosingwa's knee injury struck was certainly seized.
Branislav actually began the season in the side, at Wembley in the Community Shield, but after being exposed to Nani and Patrice Evra for 45 minutes, he had earned a yellow card and been beaten for a goal, and was replaced by Bosingwa.
After some uncertainty, Carlo Ancelotti looked to have made his mind up and plumped for the Portuguese, but injury to Alex and the manager's reluctance to play Ricardo Carvalho twice in a week allowed Ivanovic a midweek start at centre-back in our second league game of the season. His attempted clearance fell to Darren Bent at Sunderland and the striker scored, but we won the game.
His physical style saw him given another go in the 2-1 win at Stoke in September, but it wasn't until Bosingwa withdrew at Aston Villa in mid-October that he became a regular.
He bundled himself his solitary goal of the campaign at Bolton at the end of the month as he kept seven consecutive clean sheets in all competitions, while beginning to offer an added threat in attack.
Two assists came against Everton in December, and it was he who was fouled for the decisive penalty against Portsmouth a few days later.
At Christmas his importance was demonstrated by Ancelotti opting to rest him for the Fulham game. He had once previously been a player who would only be considered at such times, and that he was called on from the bench to reduce the deficit spoke volumes of his attacking potency. The move paid off as it was Branislav's deep cross headed home by Didier Drogba.
Away in the San Siro he was arguably at fault for Inter's first goal. Out of position, John Terry had to cover him but was beaten by Diego Milito, but he compensated by charging his way through Inter's midfield and defence to tee up Salomon Kalou for the equaliser.
Three days later he was caught out by Craig Bellamy as Manchester City tore us to pieces at Stamford Bridge, the Serb losing possession deep in opposition territory but failing to recover as the Welshman burst clear to score.
The title race was tight, and going all the way, so it was frustrating for the Serb to pick up a calf injury at Blackburn in March.
It kept him out almost a month, returning as a half-time sub at Spurs after damage had already been done, and starting in the 7-0 bashing of Stoke.
Impeccable at Liverpool, he set up Nicolas Anelka before coming off on the hour to a champion's ovation against Wigan. Back at Wembley for the FA Cup Final, he played 90 minutes this time as he completed a brilliant turnaround in fortunes from the start of the season.
Branislav will be looking for more of the same in 2010/11.
For a while the Serb was a frontrunner in voting for our Player of the Year award, and although he eventually lost out to Didier Drogba, he joined the Ivorian in the PFA Premier League Team of the Season.
That was in spite of beginning the campaign as a reserve, and while no professional will delight at seeing a team-mate injured, the chance presented to him when Jose Bosingwa's knee injury struck was certainly seized.
Branislav actually began the season in the side, at Wembley in the Community Shield, but after being exposed to Nani and Patrice Evra for 45 minutes, he had earned a yellow card and been beaten for a goal, and was replaced by Bosingwa.
After some uncertainty, Carlo Ancelotti looked to have made his mind up and plumped for the Portuguese, but injury to Alex and the manager's reluctance to play Ricardo Carvalho twice in a week allowed Ivanovic a midweek start at centre-back in our second league game of the season. His attempted clearance fell to Darren Bent at Sunderland and the striker scored, but we won the game.
His physical style saw him given another go in the 2-1 win at Stoke in September, but it wasn't until Bosingwa withdrew at Aston Villa in mid-October that he became a regular.
He bundled himself his solitary goal of the campaign at Bolton at the end of the month as he kept seven consecutive clean sheets in all competitions, while beginning to offer an added threat in attack.
Two assists came against Everton in December, and it was he who was fouled for the decisive penalty against Portsmouth a few days later.
At Christmas his importance was demonstrated by Ancelotti opting to rest him for the Fulham game. He had once previously been a player who would only be considered at such times, and that he was called on from the bench to reduce the deficit spoke volumes of his attacking potency. The move paid off as it was Branislav's deep cross headed home by Didier Drogba.
Away in the San Siro he was arguably at fault for Inter's first goal. Out of position, John Terry had to cover him but was beaten by Diego Milito, but he compensated by charging his way through Inter's midfield and defence to tee up Salomon Kalou for the equaliser.
Three days later he was caught out by Craig Bellamy as Manchester City tore us to pieces at Stamford Bridge, the Serb losing possession deep in opposition territory but failing to recover as the Welshman burst clear to score.
The title race was tight, and going all the way, so it was frustrating for the Serb to pick up a calf injury at Blackburn in March.
It kept him out almost a month, returning as a half-time sub at Spurs after damage had already been done, and starting in the 7-0 bashing of Stoke.
Impeccable at Liverpool, he set up Nicolas Anelka before coming off on the hour to a champion's ovation against Wigan. Back at Wembley for the FA Cup Final, he played 90 minutes this time as he completed a brilliant turnaround in fortunes from the start of the season.
Branislav will be looking for more of the same in 2010/11.
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