Mariona Caldentey's Ballon d'Or credentials are flying under radar - but 2025 runner-up can state case by carrying Arsenal back to Women's Champions League final

Through the first portion of her first season at Arsenal, Caldentey excelled in more advanced roles. At Barca, she often played on the left wing, given the freedom to come inside rather than having to play as a touchline-hugging winger. There was some of that at Arsenal, especially early on, but she often played more as a No.10, ahead of a double pivot of Lia Walti and Little.

Injuries would force her to drop into one of those deeper roles at times, but it was often as a more advanced playmaker that Jonas Eidevall and, after his departure, Slegers deployed the creative Spaniard.

Then, as winter turned to spring, there was a change. Despite the availability of Little, Walti and Kyra Cooney-Cross, the three main options for Arsenal's deeper midfield roles, Slegers chose to line Caldentey up alongside Little in the double pivot. It worked as the Gunners battered Liverpool 4-0. Then it worked in the 3-0 thumping of Real Madrid a few days later. Then it stuck.

Similar to Steph Catley's transition from left-back to left centre-back, it was a very successful if subtle tweak that Slegers made to turn Arsenal's season around after the poor start that led to Eidevall's exit. Caldentey gave the team more fluidity and creativity in the deeper areas of midfield, while also managing to improve them defensively. That side of her game certainly deserves more credit than it gets.

But what Caldentey's change of position has also done is take her out of the spotlight a little. Getting external praise is never going to be her priority, nor that of Slegers, with both focused on team success. But the hype and excitement about Caldentey's performances this season is certainly lower than it was last year, despite the 30-year-old continuing to perform at an exceptionally influential rate.

It's a shame, really, because Caldentey is once again a massive reason why Arsenal find themselves having real joy in Europe, set to face Lyon in the Champions League semi-finals on Sunday, while also being on track for an important second-placed finish in the WSL, which would grant direct entry to next season's European league phase, avoiding qualifiers.

No player in the WSL has played more successful passes in the final third than Caldentey, whose total of 427 is some 120 better than any other player in the division. That's also despite Arsenal having played at least one fewer game than every team in the WSL, and two fewer than the rest of the top five. In the Champions League, meanwhile, only Alexia Putellas tops Caldentey in that category.

That impact she has had out of possession has also been outstanding, helping Arsenal to boast the best defensive record in the WSL by some distance. Through 17 games, the Gunners have only conceded 12 times, for an average of 0.59 goals per 90 minutes, a ratio significantly better than the rest of the league. In the Champions League, they are also one of just four sides to concede fewer than one goal per game, alongside Chelsea, Lyon and Barcelona.

Despite her attacking excellence, Caldentey's role in that defensive solidity is huge. Her work rate and ability off the ball is world-class. Among Arsenal players, no one ranks higher for interceptions, possession won or ground duels won than Caldentey in the WSL, while she also ranks top for interceptions and tackles for the Gunners in the Champions League.

The big difference to last season, though, when it comes to the plaudits Caldentey has and hasn't received, is in the goals and assists. Last term, she racked up 23 goals and 18 assists for club and country, in all competitions. This time around, playing that deeper role, she only has six goals and four assists to her name.

Unfortunately, in today's world, there is a lot of weight placed on those stats and when they don't stand out, it can lead to players being overlooked. Barcelona winger Caroline Graham Hansen, for instance, didn't get her first Ballon d'Or nomination until 2024, despite deserving one long before that. When asked why she thought she got so much hype that year compared to others, Graham Hansen didn't believe it had anything to do with her actual level.

"Nothing has changed," she told La Vanguardia that season. "I think I was playing very well in the other years too, but because people only look at the numbers, they didn't look at it as much. I've scored more goals and people take notice of that."

For a player in the sort of deeper position Caldentey is now to get the attention, it often requires big moments on big stages. Look at Jessie Fleming's Olympic gold medal-winning exploits for Canada in 2021 that landed her ninth place in the Ballon d'Or voting, Lena Oberdorf's outstanding Euro 2022 which secured a top-five finish in that year's list, or Patri Guijarro's brace in the Champions League final which allowed her to earn a first nomination in 2023.

Again, as the end of the season nears, Ballon d'Or glory won't be top of mind for Caldentey. Her focus will be on the upcoming clashes with Lyon, plus a strong end to the WSL campaign to secure Arsenal the best finish possible in the league.

But last year's runner-up deserves more plaudits than she is getting this season, and it wouldn't be a surprise for her to come up with the sort of decisive performances in the final stages of this Champions League campaign that changes that, while also keeping the Gunners' title defence firmly on track. After all, she's playing wonderfully - just in a role that flies a little more under the radar.