The Portsmouth defender who sits above Cristiano Ronaldo, Barcelona, Liverpool and Bayern Munich stars on a battle-hardened list

An unusual elbow problem early into his Blues career ruled Sean Raggett out at the start of last season, while an adductor injury sustained on Harrogate’s 3G pitch also sidelined him for a period.

But in 2020 the centre-back didn't miss a single minute of league action for Kenny Jackett's side.

Forming defensive partnerships with Christian Burgess, Jack Whatmough and more recently Rasmus Nicolaisen, Raggett was an ever-present in 34 third-tier matches.

In addition, he played five EFL Trophy games, four FA Cup ties and two Carabao Cup encounters.

The stats all demonstrate what we’ve all come to know – Raggett as a resolute, robust defender whose no-nonsense approach has won over plenty of his early detractors.

What's more, the sheer amount of football Raggett was involved in over the past 12 months was among the most in any division across the world – and above a plethora of star-studded names.

CIES Football Observatory have calculated the number of minutes every outfield player racked up in 2020.

Raggett came out 22nd on the list, having recorded 3,960 minutes of football throughout the 12 months just gone.

In terms of the EFL, only Reading's Michael Morrison and Brentford's Ethan Pinnock can boast they played more.

Meanwhile, only seven players played more than him in the whole of England, including Harry Maguire and Bruno Fernandes.

But when it comes to the rest of the planet, Raggett ranks ahead of elite aces.

The 26-year-old sits higher than likes of Juventus’ Cristiano Ronaldo (3,668 minutes), whose renowned fitness and work ethic is why many believe he is the world’s best.

The likes of Liverpool midfielder Gini Wijnaldum (3,957), Barcelona forward Antoine Griezmann (3,618) and Bayern Munich and World Cup winner Thomas Muller (3,714) are also among others below the Pompey defender.

What makes Raggett's feat more impressive is that he had fewer opportunities to play than many others who are on the list.

While the coronavirus pandemic suspended football across the globe last March, the top divisions in the likes of England, Spain, Germany and Italy restarted in the summer to fulfil remaining fixtures.

Yet League One was curtailed, with the table decided by a point-per-game formula.

As a result, Pompey played twice more in the play-off semi-finals against Oxford.

Raggett was involved in every second of both legs that ended in penalty shootout heartbreak.

The ex-Dover defender's certainly proven he's as battle-hardened as they come – and that augurs well for the Blues' latest promotion push.

Top five

1 Harry Maguire (Manchester United) – (4,745)

2 Ruben Dias (Manchester City) – (4,344)

3 Lionel Messi (Barcelona) – (4,293)

4 Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United) – (4,164)

5 Bruno Pacheco (Ceará SC) – (4,162)

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