After a critically-acclaimed first season back in the Barclays Premier League, we take a look at how much midfield lynchpin Cesc Fabregas really influenced Chelsea in their title winning season and also take a look at some of his very few downfalls over the course of the last year.

STATS

We'll begin with Fabregas' playing statisitcs, as this has become such a key component of judging a player's ability in the modern game. First and foremost, arguably the main job of a central midfielder - passing. Fabregas played 2627 passes this season, completing 2239 - an impressive pass completion rate of around 85%.

Of those 2239 passes 75 of them were considered to be key, meaning that they affected a game either through assisting a goal or being involved in the build-up before one. Also, what many have called his biggest attribute is the sheer number of assists he has provided for teammates this season in the Premier League, a hugely impressive 18. These stats alone show just how influential he has been this season, and how well Jose Mourinho did in the transfer market to pick him up before anyone else.

KEY GAMES

With Fabregas having a consistently good season all-round, it is difficult to pinpoint just one game where he had an outstanding and game-winning performance, so here are three games where he showed all those characteristics. What better place to start than the first game of the season - there was one key moment when Fabregas showed the Premier League just how good he still was.

Chelsea had just equalized against newly-promoted Burnley after Diego Costa's debut goal and there had been some lovely build-up play by the attacking trio of Oscar, Eden Hazard and Andre Schuerrle, before the ball dropped to Fabregas and without looking played a simple dinked pass that ripped the stubborn Tykes' defence apart.

Next was Fabregas's first goal for Chelsea, against Crystal Palace. Palace had been on a bad run of form under soon-to-be-sacked Neil Warnock but after another lovely team move - not for the first time from Chelsea that season - the ball came to Fabregas on the edge of the box who performed a deft shuffle before slicing it under the falling Julian Speroni. However it was not only this goal that showed his brilliance as throughout the rest of the game, Fabregas completed 90% of his passes and spurred Chelsea on to a hard-fought 2-1 win over their London counterparts.

The final game and potentially most memorable game for Chelsea this season was the admittedly dull match against QPR. After 88 minutes of potentially one of Fabregas' worst games for Chelsea throughout the season, he popped up with a hugely important goal which may have been the single strike which gave the Blues the biggest boost in the title race.

After scoring the goal which quietened the QPR crowd after 88 minutes of boisterous singing from both sets of fans, Fabregas ran straight into the most aggressive corner of the Rangers' faithful. While this game may not have showcased Fabregas' technical ability, it did in some ways show his new-found loyalty and love for Chelsea

DOWNFALLS

Even though Blues fans some would say Fabregas had a faultless season, in reality they must face the facts and agree with Arsenal fans for once that indeed he did fade away after January - however it was arguably not as bad as many made out. The main games which he did dip in quality were admittedly Chelsea's key matches against the likes of Everton, Southampton and Manchester United at home.

However, towards the last five games - perhaps excluding against West Brom - he managed to regain some of that early-season form and help Chelsea cross the finishing line to claim the title.

VERDICT

Overall, it is fair to say that Fabregas had around an 8/10 season and certainly that without him, Costa would not have scored as many important goals as he did. It is also probably true that Nemanja Matic's own personal stellar form may well have suffered without him. So hopefully for Blues fans, after a summer of rest with no World Cup to worry about, Fabregas can come back in August and be able perform for all 38 games of the Premier League season second time around.