Ramires completed his move to Chelsea on 13th August 2010, on a four year contract for a reported fee of £17m.
Upon his arrival at Chelsea, he said:
"Every player in the world would love to play for Chelsea and it's a great opportunity that was given to me, I will give my best to repay this chance, and I am very happy... I have seen most of the facilities and it is really impressive. I believe what you have here is everything and a little bit more that every player needs to do well. I know I haven't seen everything but with a little time I will get to know everything and I am sure I will be very happy here.
"Just to think that I will wear Chelsea's shirt is a dream come true for any player. I know it is a very strong, competitive league but I just hope that I can adapt as fast and as well as I can to give my best, and I am sure everything is going to be fine."
Ramires made his debut against Stoke City on 28 August 2010 in the Premier League, coming on as a substitute for Michael Essien in the 85th minute. On 11 September 2010, he made his full Premier League debut, starting against West Ham United. He also started in Chelsea's 2-0 win over Arsenal on 3 October 2010, winning possession and then putting Ashley Cole through to cross to Didier Drogba for Chelsea's first goal. Ramires went on to establish himself in the starting line-up, and scored his first goal for Chelsea in a 4-0 win against Bolton Wanderers at the Reebok Stadium. Ramires settled into English football in the second half of the season, putting in a string of energetic and consistent performances. In March he scored a sublime goal to seal a 2-0 victory against Manchester City, dropping a shoulder and beating three defenders before finishing confidently. The strike was later voted "Goal of the Season" by Chelsea fans. Ramires was sent off for two bookable offences in Chelsea's Champions League Quarter Final defeat against Manchester United, but overall his first season in England was a personal success, having cemented his place in the side and made 41 appearances in all competitions.
The 2011-12 season was tempestuous even by the standards of Chelsea's recent history, but Ramires was one of the stand-out performers throughout the season, scoring 12 goals in 47 appearances and providing exceptional energy and stamina in the Blues' midfield. Having established himself as a key player during his first season in England the Brazilian international was a regular starter under new manager André Villas-Boas.
He scored his first goals of the season in late September, scoring a brace against newly-promoted Swansea City in a 4-1 win. A knee injury kept him out briefly in October but he returned to help Chelsea qualify as group winners in the UEFA Champions League, with goals against Genk and Valencia. In the New Year he scored another brace, this time against Portsmouth in the FA Cup 3rd Round, but an injury sustained in the next round would keep him out for three weeks. In early March, just a couple of days after André Villas-Boas had been sacked as manager, it was announced that Ramires had signed a new contract that would keep him at the club until 2017. Despite the poor run of results that had lost Villas-Boas his job, Chelsea remained in contention in the remaining cup competitions, and Ramires contributed to the Blues reaching both the FA Cup and UEFA Champions League finals. In the FA Cup semi-final against Tottenham Hotspur he scored the third goal, killing off the North London side, with Chelsea eventually winning 5-1. In the Champions League semi-finals against Barcelona he was even more influential, setting up Didier Drogba for the only goal of the 1st leg before scoring with a beautifully taken chip to put Chelsea back in contention in first half injury time in the 2nd leg, the Blues having been 2-0 down on the night and down to 10 men as half time approached. Chelsea eventually drew the match 2-2 to progress 3-2 on aggregate, but Ramires picked up a booking that would rule him out of the final. In the FA Cup final he scored after 11 minutes following a trademark driving run to put Chelsea 1-0 up against Liverpool in a match they would eventually win 2-1; Ramires' first trophy at the club. A second followed two weeks later as Chelsea won the UEFA Champions League for the first time, despite the Brazilian's absence through suspension. One of the outstanding players of Chelsea's season, and also scoring crucial goals at crucial times, Ramires was one of the final three candidates for Player of the Year, but ultimately lost out to Juan Mata. He was voted Players' Player of the Year however; his team-mates fully acknowledging the enormous contribution he had made to Chelsea's success.
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