15 Premier League Players Who Have Underperformed So Far This Season
Arsenal’s loss at Chelsea on Sunday once again raised questions about why the Gunners can’t seem to perform in the biggest matches, with Mesut Ozil again coming under pressure, as per B/R's Charlie Melman.
The £42.5 million German often gets singled out whenever things don’t go to plan for his side, but there is little doubt that he has failed to shine this season. However, he’s not the only one.
Here are 15 players who haven’t quite hit the heights during this campaign.
Wayne Rooney
1 of 15
"""As Mata returns to the side he brings more finesse to the No. 10 role than Rooney, and his passing is also better and more incisive. #MUFC
— Sam Pilger (@sampilger) October 5, 2014"
He’s managed three goals in his six Premier League appearances in 2014/15 so perhaps this is a little harsh, but there is little doubt that Wayne Rooney hasn’t quite sparkled in the way that many predicted he would following the arrival of Louis van Gaal at Manchester United.
With frustrations boiling over and leading to a red card against West Ham recently, Rooney is now facing questions over his position in the team, despite the fact that he’s now got the captain’s armband.
If Robin van Persie and Radamel Falcao continue to hit it off, then plenty may view the England captain as surplus to requirements at Old Trafford.
Edin Dzeko
2 of 15
"Edin Dzeko leads the league for shots off target. Mario Balotelli is in second place with 16. pic.twitter.com/fRJhGehIRI
— Bootifulgame (@bootifulgame) October 5, 2014"
His goals at the tail end of last season helped Manchester City take the title, but until his recent strikes in the Capital One Cup against Sheffield Wednesday, Edin Dzeko had gone seven City games without finding the net.
The Bosnian followed those goals up with a double strike against Hull City in the Premier League, but with Alvaro Negredo now gone and Stevan Jovetic again suffering with injury problems, you’d have thought that this was a perfect chance for Dzeko to establish himself as indispensable to City, but he’s been anonymous in a few matches.
Yaya Toure
3 of 15
"When Yaya Toure can't be arsed, he really can't be arsed. Can only assume he has a clause in his contract that prevents him being subbed.
— Ric Turner (@bluemoon_mcfc) September 30, 2014"
The slump was arrested somewhat when he casually curled home Manchester City's fantastic opening goal at Aston Villa, but even that can’t disguise the fact that Yaya Toure simply hasn’t looked himself for a while now.
City’s talismanic Ivorian was so often the inspiration behind their glory last season, but this time around he’s been curiously passive in several matches in which the midfield battles have been fought around him by Fernandinho or new signing Fernando, who helped change the Villa game when he came on.
Age could be a factor in Toure slowing down, but it is the rate at which this decline in his performance level has occurred that has surprised many.
Emmanuel Adebayor
4 of 15
"What is Adebayor doing on the pitch. He has been totally useless today. Perhaps he can't take the Arsenal fans booing him
— Lord Sugar (@Lord_Sugar) September 27, 2014"
Despite an improved display in the win over Southampton, this has so far been a largely underwhelming campaign for Tottenham’s Emmanuel Adebayor, with his one goal coming in a 4-0 win over QPR.
The Togolese’s languid style can lead to many suggesting an apparent lack of work rate, and while that is a little harsh given his goal record in the Premier League, the forward certainly needs to up his game if he is to spearhead an attack with the talented trio of Christian Eriksen, Nacer Chadli and Erik Lamela behind him.
Mesut Ozil
5 of 15
"How Mesut Ozil got 90 minutes today we will never know.
— gunnerblog (@gunnerblog) October 5, 2014"
It is easy to single out Mesut Ozil when things don’t go to plan for Arsenal. It is a little harsh in some cases; it is entirely justified in others.
Ozil’s tendency to go missing in some of Arsenal’s bigger matches isn’t a trait Gunners fans wanted to see continued this season, yet it was there again at Chelsea as Arsene Wenger’s men failed to register a shot on target in a Premier League game for the first time in 11 years.
That isn’t entirely down to the German, obviously, but the fact he didn’t do much to put it right is a concern.
Mathieu Flamini
6 of 15
"We have an excellent DM at Arsenal. It's just a pity those attributes are split between Arteta and Flamini...
— James 'Raul' Stökes (@JamesRaulStokes) October 6, 2014"
When Arsenal were riding high during the first half of last season and signalling a serious intent to provide a sustained title challenge, Arsene Wenger’s re-signing of midfielder Mathieu Flamini was being hailed as a masterstroke by many—the Frenchman slotting back into the Arsenal midfield as if he’d never been away.
One year on, Flamini is looking exactly what he is: a decent defensive midfielder who can do “a job” for a team, but also a symbol of why Wenger needed to sign a proven top-class player in that position in the summer.
Steven Gerrard
7 of 15
"Agbonlahor #avfc and Downing #whufc closed down Gerrard #lfc in previous league games, Naismith looks to have those duties for #efc
— Henry Winter (@henrywinter) September 27, 2014
"
Liverpool’s frequently watchable matches last season have arguably come back to haunt them this time around, as coaches and managers worked out ways to stop a team that is now without the services of Luis Suarez.
One of those methods of stopping the Reds involved putting a player right up against Steven Gerrard in a bid to stop the Liverpool captain controlling matches from deep, something that was best illustrated by Aston Villa’s Gabriel Agbonlahor and West Ham’s Stewart Downing, whose sides both beat Liverpool in September.
It was interesting to see Brendan Rodgers move Gerrard further up the field in the second half of the win over West Bromwich Albion, as surely giving his captain more room to play in will help improve the standard of both his and his team's performances.
Philippe Coutinho
8 of 15
"Not aware of Coutinho having a knock. Looks like he's simply been rested which isn't a great surprise considering his recent struggles.
— James Pearce (@JamesPearceEcho) September 20, 2014"
Indeed, if Gerrard were to be stationed further forward, then Philippe Coutinho's position in the team could be under threat. A lot was expected of the Brazilian this season, but he has so far failed to deliver.
He has, however, managed to get back into his national team’s squad, but that is surely based on last season’s sparkling form, which hasn’t yet been repeated in this campaign. The playmaker seems to have suffered from being unable to link up with Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge as he often did to great effect last season.
Simon Mignolet
9 of 15
"Perfect opportunity for Carragher to defend Mignolet after GNev criticisms there. He couldn't. Which is just as damning.
— Daniel Taylor (@DTguardian) September 29, 2014"
Belgian goalkeeper Simon Mignolet hasn’t made a dreadful and obvious error this season, but it is more his presence—or lack thereof—that is letting Liverpool down at the moment.
The Reds have recruited plenty of new defenders who would have craved a commanding presence behind them to help them settle in, but Mignolet hasn’t been that, and his a failure to boss his 18-yard box has led to 10 goals being conceded in seven league games, as well as four more in other competitions.
Mignolet looks to be lacking confidence, and it could just be that an injection of character is all he needs to improve.
Rickie Lambert
10 of 15
"#LFC opinion: Is Rickie #Lambert TOO desperate to succeed with the Reds? http://t.co/YwJYAVl7RM pic.twitter.com/644OAzthy5
— Liverpool Echo (@LivEchoLFC) October 5, 2014"
You might be expecting to read Mario Balotelli’s name here, but we’re going to cut him a little slack.
It has been difficult for Rickie Lambert in his first few weeks at Liverpool, with plenty watching his every move and of course reminding him that this is “his dream” come true.
Every step he takes on the pitch seems to be an event, and while he hasn’t had many of those due to a lack of playing time, when he has figured for the Reds he’s looked somewhat out of place.
This isn’t entirely his fault—it must be tough to reach full fitness when playing so little—but supporters will be looking for more from him once he returns from an international break in which he’ll hopefully get some playing time.
Romelu Lukaku
11 of 15
"If you look very carefully at Paddy McNair’s shorts, you can see the outline of Romelu Lukaku in his pocket.
— Iain Macintosh (@iainmacintosh) October 5, 2014"
After proving such a success on loan at Goodison Park last season, Romelu Lukaku’s permanent £28 million switch to Everton was supposed to herald the start of a new era in which the Blues could compete financially with their rivals and the Belgian would finally establish himself in England. Neither has happened yet.
A curiously out-of-form Everton have witnessed just two goals from their club-record signing, and the forward has been disappointing in the club’s bigger matches in the campaign—games they were looking for him to make the difference in against sides also challenging for European places.
Tim Howard
12 of 15
"At what point do we address the keeper situation? Joel isn't good enough but how many points has Howard cost us this season?
— School of Science (@SOS1878) October 5, 2014"
After a summer spent inspiring both his country and Internet Photoshoppers, things have returned back to earth with a bump for Tim Howard, who has conceded 16 goals in Everton’s seven Premier League matches this season.
They aren’t all his fault, of course, and he has still managed to produce the odd wonderful save, but the American has looked vulnerable at times, with plenty of the goals he’s conceded falling into the “he could have saved that” category.
The World Cup must feel like a long time ago for him at present.
Sylvain Distin
13 of 15
"Everton's defending gets worse by the match. Distin nearly puts one in the back of his own net but it crashes the bar and Sigurdsson taps in
— Tony Scott (@Tony_Scott11) September 23, 2014"
For so long a stalwart at the back for Everton, age appears to have caught up with the 36-year-old Sylvain Distin this season as Everton continue to ship goals.
Including the Capital One Cup, the Frenchman has played in five Blues matches this season, during which they’ve conceded a staggering 16 times. That run saw him dropped from the side for recent games (although an injury was reported), but he could find himself back in Roberto Martinez’s plans soon following an injury to John Stones.
Fabricio Coloccini
14 of 15
"Coloccini is awful. Chronically awful.
— NUFC Stats (@NUFC_Stats) October 4, 2014"
Almost all of the criticism directed at Newcastle this season has been toward Alan Pardew, but the fact remains that the Magpies have conceded 14 goals from their seven Premier League matches so far—which is more than everyone bar Burnley and Everton.
Centre-back and captain Fabricio Coloccini has played in all seven of those games, with his performances a long way from the previous consistency he showed in a black and white shirt.
It could once be said that Coloccini was the best thing about the Newcastle defence, but now he’s a disruptive influence on it.
Moussa Sissoko
15 of 15
"Sissoko needs dropping. He's been absolutely awful. 2-2 #NUFC
— NUFCfans.co.uk (@nufcfans) October 4, 2014"
When you’ve set pretty high standards, it can be all the more alarming when you don’t live up to them. Having once been one of the pillars of the Newcastle team, Moussa Sissoko has let standards slip this season.
The Frenchman—who can be a very good player when on form—has been almost passive as the Magpies have slid down the division, spending this international break in the relegation zone.
