As our analysts predicted, Chelsea’s Frank Lampard’s (pictured second from the left) reign at the top of the FTBL ranking of European midfielders was rather brief, as the Blues yesterday struggled to overcome modest APOEL Nicosia (1:0) in the Champions League, which resulted in him dropping more than 20 rating points: he has now slipped to 3rd place, clearing the way for Barcelona’s Xavi to capture the top spot with a tally of 173.71 points.

The England international now has an overall FTBL rating of 155.98 points and has fallen behind teammate Michael Ballack (164.94 points). Ballack sat out the game against APOEL.

Xavi will have a plank of just 6 rating points to beat in his next game. He still has some way to go to rise to the top of the most prestigious FTBL World Ranking of midfielders: that chart is still topped by Argentine prodigy Lionel Messi with a tally of 211.25 points. Xavi is in 2nd place on that chart.