Premier League Player Rankings After Weekend of November 29-30
Welcome to the 12th edition of our Premier League player rankings, continuing for another season in its mission to quantify the form of England's top-tier players.
We pick the top 20 players on the basis of form and performances in league games only. There's a sea of change as Southampton lose and Chelsea are held by Sunderland in the north-east.
The rankings are formed based on the player's last four games, with slightly more emphasis placed on their most recent outing.
Only Premier League performances are counted, and one-week wonders do not find their way in by default (see: David de Gea did not qualify in Week 7 for one great showing but now has after consistently strong form).
Take a look and see if you agree with our selections, and if you feel like we've missed anyone, let us know in the comments below.
Dropping out
1 of 21
Saido Berahino, West Bromwich Albion—Berahino has been sliding for a while and failed to notch/impact against Arsenal this weekend.
Joe Hart, Manchester City—Perhaps harsh, but Hart is not as sparking as others.
Paul Dummett, Newcastle United—Newcastle, defensively, were not fantastic on Saturday.
Fraser Forster, Southampton—Forster conceded three, and despite a great one-on-one save against Sergio Aguero, he drops out.
20. Mile Jedinak, Crystal Palace
2 of 21
Last Week: New!
Differential: New!
Since getting sent off against Sunderland, Mile Jedinak has recovered and found his goalscoring instinct again. In 2013-14, he was renowned as a tackling machine, but he's already up to five goals this time around as he improves his game in the final third.
His latest strike, an equalising goal away to Swansea City, capped another strong showing.
Is it the beard?
19. James McCarthy, Everton
3 of 21
Last Week: 16
Differential: -3
James McCarthy missed Everton's 2-1 loss to Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday. His absence was obvious in the centre of the park.
As Spurs took control and began scything through the middle, Harry Kane turned Muhamed Besic and Gareth Barry inside-out as he drove forward. With McCarthy in there, it could well have been a different story.
18. Wilfried Bony, Swansea City
4 of 21
Last Week: New!
Differential: New!
No wonder Swansea City signed Wilfied Bony to a lucrative extension until 2018, per BBC Sport. He has more calendar goals than anyone in 2014, scoring 18 with a month to spare.
His opener against Crystal Palace took his personal tally to six for the season, and a slow start has evaporated and given way to a torrent of goals.
17. Danny Ings, Burnley
5 of 21
Last Week: New!
Differential: New!
Danny Ings produced a wonderful second half to grab a point off Aston Villa on Saturday, scoring a late penalty when the pressure was on.
He then fired another late chance against the post after a wonderful bit of skill, fooling Brad Guzan but somehow failing to find the back of the net.
The English striker has three goals in two games.
16. Yannick Bolasie, Crystal Palace
6 of 21
Last Week: New!
Differential: New!
Yannick Bolasie has been on fire in recent weeks, single-handedly lifting Crystal Palace into a decent vein of form.
Against Liverpool, he was a match-winner, tormenting the Reds' full-backs and weaving his way into dangerous positions. He'll hope to continue that run against Aston Villa on Tuesday.
15. Dusan Tadic, Southampton
7 of 21
Last Week: 9
Differential: -6
Dusan Tadic hasn't played well for three weeks now, and on Sunday, he was the worst player on the St. Mary's Stadium pitch.
Given how high he's been flying of late, that will come as a real shock to those who only "check in" on the Premier League, and the Serbian is truly a candidate to be dropped by Ronald Koeman.
He's sliding here.
14. Charlie Austin, Queens Park Rangers
8 of 21
Last Week: 18
Differential: +4
With seven goals in 12 starts and five in his last five, per WhoScored, Charlie Austin is categorically shoving it into the faces of those who doubted him.
His all-round game has improved dramatically, and Harry Redknapp has placed strong players around him to ensure he gets an appropriate number of chances.
13. Graziano Pelle, Southampton
9 of 21
Last Week: 10
Differential: -3
Graziano Pelle looked isolated and slow on Sunday, with just a few neat touches and flicks being rare highlights in a largely poor performance.
Eliaquim Mangala and Vincent Kompany handled him very well and ensured he never got close to touching the ball in the box, and when he doesn't perform, Saints are prone to drawing a blank.
12. Stewart Downing, West Ham United
10 of 21
Last Week: 15
Differential: +3
Stewart Downing returned to the starting XI for West Ham United this week much to Sam Allardyce's relief, and although he didn't directly impact the scoresheet as usual, he played a good game.
He tried his best to support Andy Carroll and run beyond where possible, and with the game stretched in the second half, the former Aston Villa man made some darts forward and took a few shots.
Not quite a spark, but hardly anonymous.
11. Alexis Sanchez
11 of 21
Last Week: 11
Differential: -
Alexis Sanchez shrank a little against West Bromwich Albion as Danny Welbeck and Santi Cazorla took centre stage. In truth, it's a positive to see Arsenal win a game without the direct impact of this Chilean.
Sanchez tried a little too hard and reverted to his old model, where dribbles were a little too long and passes weren't quite early enough.
10. David De Gea, Manchester United
12 of 21
Last Week: 12
Differential: +2
David De Gea did almost nothing on Saturday, as Hull City sat back and offered nothing in attack. It must have been nice for the Spaniard to have a quiet day after starring fairly often in goal over the last few months.
He's played his way into the conversation of top goalkeepers in the Premier League.
9. Branislav Ivanovic, Chelsea
13 of 21
Last Week: 13
Differential: +4
Branislav Ivanovic dealt with Connor Wickham fairly well on Saturday, but Connor Wickham dealt with Branislav Ivanovic, too.
By that, we mean they nullified each other and stopped each other from having an impact on the game; many of the Serbian's classic forward runs were stopped.
Still, a clean sheet for Ivanovic.
8. Nathaniel Clyne, Southampton
14 of 21
Last Week: 7
Differential: -1
Nathaniel Clyne had a poor game on Sunday, failing to show the explosiveness and adventurousness that has made him an England international.
He fumbled quite a few long switch passes out for throw-ins and generally looked clueless as to how he was going to negotiate Gael Clichy. Not what we've come to expect.
7. Diego Costa, Chelsea
15 of 21
Last Week: 8
Differential: +1
It was a bit of an off-day for Diego Costa, who rarely has them but hurts his side when he does.
Much has been made of his personal battle with John O'Shea throughout the match, culminating in Costa kicking out and likely deserving a red card.
Amazingly, due to the sliding nature of everyone around him, Costa actually ends up moving up on a day he fails to score.
6. Oscar, Chelsea
16 of 21
Last Week: 5
Differential: -1
Oscar simply wasn't as effective as he usually is on Saturday at the Stadium of Light, and the reason for that is simple: There was no space to work in.
Sunderland sat deep, and Lee Cattermole played exclusively without the ball, forcing Oscar to drift wide and find space outside. He merely clogged other areas.
5. Cesc Fabregas, Chelsea
17 of 21
Last Week: 3
Differential: -2
For the first 20 or 30 minutes, Cesc Fabregas had Sunderland penned in to their own third on Saturday as he whisked passes left and right.
Initially, that looked promising, but as the Black Cats held out and Cattermole went to work, the Spaniard's lack of penetration became a noted issue.
A rare blank and suspect day.
4. Morgan Schneiderlin, Southampton
18 of 21
Last Week: 4
Differential: -
Morgan Schneiderlin was removed at half-time during Southampton's loss to Manchester City, and the 45 minutes after the break proved just how valuable he is.
It went from 0-0 to 0-3 in the second half, with City scything through midfield and the Saints looking powerless to stop them. Koeman will pray the Frenchman is fit for Arsenal midweek.
3. Eden Hazard, Chelsea
19 of 21
Last Week: 2
Differential: -1
Amazingly, Eden Hazard was kept quiet this weekend as Chelsea drew 0-0 with Sunderland. It is perhaps the most anonymous performance he's put in this season.
Praise should be directed to Santiago Vergini for shutting him up, a feat every other full-back so far in 2014-15 has failed to do. We'll give you one off-week, Eden.
2. Sergio Aguero, Manchester City
20 of 21
Last Week: 6
Differential: +4
Sergio Aguero finished in B/R's surefire winners' column after his performance on Sunday, where he wreaked havoc at St. Mary's Stadium to the tune of two assists.
He coaxed Jose Fonte into a clumsy challenge that should have drawn a penalty and later began tormenting Fraser Forster on the counter with his powerful, mazy runs.
A truly excellent showing.
1. Nemanja Matic, Chelsea
21 of 21
Last Week: 1
Differential: -
Chelsea may not have hit their heights as a team, but Nemanja Matic did on an individual basis.
"Nemanja Matic: MotM vs Sunderland, Rating 8.46, Tackles 6, Interceptions 4, Clearances 3, Dribbles 3, Completed Passes 95 @chelseafc
— WhoScored.com (@WhoScored) November 29, 2014"
He posted this stat line, per WhoScored, then broke the seasonal record for ball recoveries in the middle third (14).
