Premier League Player Rankings: Ozil Up, Alexis Sanchez Down, Ighalo in

We have three new entries in our Premier League player rankings this week as the competition for places truly hots up.

Arsenal and Manchester City are well represented, and the former's players are upwardly mobile. We also say goodbye to two Manchester United players, who haven't quite kept their chins above water.

The rankings are based on players' last six games, with slightly more emphasis placed on their most recent outing. Only Premier League performances are counted, and typically, one-week wonders do not find their way in.

We look beyond the statistical measures and into the performance, reviewing tape and gauging impact.

It's not just goals, assists and heroic clearances that impress. It's about how a player contributes to the tactical plan at hand and what impact he has over a 90-minute period.

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 section below.

Dropping out / Honourable Mentions

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Dropping Out

Matteo Darmian, Manchester United: Despite technically helping United to a clean sheet, it's clear Darmian's no longer playing well enough to hold a spot in this ranking.

Morgan Schneiderlin, Manchester United: Decent against Crystal Palace, but not enough to hold on to a spot in the ranking due to intense competition.

Sadio Mane, Southampton: Just not his sizzling self these past few weeks.

Honourable Mentions

Ross Barkley, Everton

Laurent Koscielny, Arsenal

Nicolas Otamendi, Manchester City

Mousa Dembele, Tottenham Hotspur

Georginio Wijnaldum, Newcastle United

Jack Butland, Stoke City

Harry Kane, Tottenham Hotspur

20. Santi Cazorla, Arsenal

GEOFF CADDICK/Getty Images

Last Week: 18

Differential: -2

Santi Cazorla wasn't his usual influential self this weekend. We're loath to label it a bad performance, because it wasn't, but he was strangely quiet and borderline anonymous in chance creation.

With Francis Coquelin supplying passes from deep, Mesut Ozil wrecking Swansea's defensive structure from between the lines and Joel Campbell seeing plenty of the ball in advanced areas, there wasn't a role for the Spaniard in this one.

It all just sort of passed him by.

19. Chris Smalling, Manchester United

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Last Week: Unranked

Differential: New!

Manchester United have secured a clean sheet in four of their last five Premier League matches—the anomaly being the heavy loss to Arsenal—and a fundamental part of this defensive solidity is Chris Smalling.

The Englishman, 25, has had a brilliant 2015 and is now developing into the defensive leader Sir Alex Ferguson saw back at Fulham in 2010. He's at his best when playing the aggressor role, but his ball-playing skills are coming on, too.

18. Hector Bellerin, Arsenal

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Last Week: Unranked

Differential: New!

We'd been considering bringing Hector Bellerin into the ranking for a week or two, and his stellar performance against Swansea City this weekend forced our hand.

Over the last few weeks, the 20-year-old has been part of a good defensive line and provided a welcome attacking edge on the right side—particularly against Watford—but on Saturday his defensive nous shone through.

Bottling up Jefferson Montero—just—is one hell of an achievement.

17. Toby Alderweireld, Tottenham Hotspur

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Last Week: 15

Differential: -2

Toby Alderweireld did very little for 60 minutes against Aston Villa, then suddenly came under stern pressure and examination as the away side attempted a heroic comeback push.

Some timely interventions and strong tackles helped Spurs hold out for the victory, but some of his passing in the first half was the epitome of wayward.

We're not used to seeing him sling it out of play under no pressure three times in a half.

16. Virgil Van Dijk, Southampton

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Last Week: 19

Differential: +3

Virgil van Dijk's good form continued as he helped Southampton to a clean sheet victory over Bournemouth on Sunday.

The Saints were by far the better side and therefore did not come under too much pressure, but the 24-year-old did impress when called upon, making two eye-popping recovery tackles to prevent shots on goal.

Maarten Stekelenburg had a very quiet day, and he has Van Dijk to thank for it.

15. Odion Ighalo, Watford

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Last Week: Unranked

Differential: New!

With Watford coming into the Premier League this season, the storyline was all set to be about Troy Deeney. After the club captain's scoring rampage in the Championship last season, the questions were all regarding whether he could step it up a notch.

But, out of the blue, Odion Ighalo has grasped the mantle instead. His two goals at the weekend take his tally to seven for the campaign, and Quique Sanchez Flores showered him with praise after the game, thanking him for staying with the club this summer, despite big-money interest from China, per Eurosport:

"Ighalo took a very important decision to stay at Watford. It was a brilliant idea. He is a wonderful man who stayed here because his future here at Watford is really big. He is already an important player for us."

14. Alexis Sanchez, Arsenal

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Last Week: 10

Differential: -4

Per Sky Sports, Alexis Sanchez was crowned PFA Fans' Player of the Month for October—a decision that essentially shocked everybody. His form over the last few weeks has taken a slight turn, and against Swansea City on Saturday, he was borderline anonymous.

Bar one excellent pass into Olivier Giroud for a good chance (which the Frenchman skied), Alexis did not impact or contribute—a rarity, certainly, but it means we must move him down.

Interestingly, Mesut Ozil was crowned Arsenal's Player of the Month on the same day. Alexis wasn't even the best player at his own club in October, never mind the entire league.

13. Bacary Sagna, Manchester City

Chris Brunskill/Getty Images

Last Week: 13

Differential: None

Bacary Sagna didn't have to do an awful lot defensively against Norwich City—his side hogged nearly 70 percent of the possession and faced just five shots, per WhoScored.com—but his offensive impact was lacking.

The 32-year-old wasn't able to get forward and influence in the final third, and his crossing was a little iffy. He supports the winger well and rarely loses the ball when recycling and switching, but it's in games like these—close-run scorelines—that fans hark for the penetrative runs of Pablo Zabaleta.

The pressure on Sagna in every single game is high; he needs to maintain a stunning level of performance.

12. Kevin De Bruyne, Manchester City

David Ramos/Getty Images

Last Week: 14

Differential: +2

Kevin De Bruyne came off early as a second-half substitute against Norwich City, perhaps looking a little jaded, but he was still the biggest creative threat while on the pitch.

He put in a number of good crosses, splitting wide in order to find space to measure in the delivery, and it was his perfectly arced corner that found Nicolas Otamendi for the opener—though the plaudits here really should go to the defender; it was a real thumper of a header.

11. Francis Coquelin, Arsenal

Tony Marshall/Getty Images

Last Week: 17

Differential: +6

With Santi Cazorla struggling to implement his will on the game, Francis Coquelin stepped up and kept Arsenal ticking in midfield. He completed each and every one of his attempted 41 passes, racking up a 100 percent success rate, per WhoScored.com.

His game is usually all about the nitty-gritty, defensive details, but that element wasn't required on Saturday. Instead, the 24-year-old showed poise and intelligence in possession, proving he's improved on the ball over the past few months.

The Frenchman soars up six places after another excellent display.

10. Jefferson Montero, Swansea City

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Last Week: 8

Differential: -2

Jefferson Montero looked like he might make mincemeat of Hector Bellerin in the early stages of Arsenal's clash with Swansea City, adding the Spaniard to his list of victims for the year, but the fizz in his game died off quickly and he ended up being blunted.

The Ecuadorian beat his marker to the line a few times and supplied a good cross to Bafetimbi Gomis, in addition to winning a few well-placed free-kicks for Gylfi Sigurdsson to take, but the end-product was lacking. For that reason, he moves down.

9. Graziano Pelle, Southampton

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Last Week: 11

Differential: +2

The tried and trusted combination, Dusan Tadic to Graziano Pelle, worked wonders again this weekend as Southampton comfortably saw off Bournemouth.

The Italian nodded home under pressure following an excellent delivery into the box, taking his tally for the season to six.

His all-round game impressed, too; dominating in the air and allowing Saints to play off him, move the ball forward quickly and create chances.

8. Yaya Toure, Manchester City

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Last Week: 9

Differential: +1

Yaya Toure put in a strong, revitalised showing against Norwich City on Saturday and topped it with the match-winning goal.

He tucked away the winning penalty in injury time and it was a just reward for his efforts; his passing was clean, his range was good, and he assisted Manchester City in dominating possession for long stretches.

The Manchester Evening News labelled it "an understated, but vitally important, influential controlling game in midfield."

7. Fernandinho, Manchester City

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Last Week: 5

Differential: -2

It was a quiet game for Fernandinho on Saturday, perhaps because Yaya Toure took control of the midfield instead, and it left the Brazilian a little marginalised.

There were a few small errors in his passing that nearly led to chances created for Norwich but nothing major, and he didn't shuffle forward with his usual gusto.

Overall, just a bit lacking.

6. Eric Dier, Tottenham Hotspur

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Last Week: 6

Differential: None

Eric Dier put in another strong showing as Tottenham Hotspur saw off the challenge of Aston Villa on Monday night, dominating the central-midfield zones and embodying Mauricio Pochettino's high-intensity philosophy.

The 21-year-old slammed through several challenges, bettered Carlos Sanchez in the battle for the middle and produced one miraculous tracking tackle on Alan Hutton to prevent a good chance being created.

Dier did mess up once in possession, leading to a chance, but it's arguable Hugo Lloris shouldn't have passed him the ball under so much pressure.

5. Dimitri Payet, West Ham

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Last Week: 2

Differential: -3

It was a bit of an off-week for West Ham's Dimitri Payet, who failed to conjure up his usual magic this weekend against Watford—an eminently beatable team.

"He needs to be dominating games like this if West Ham are to really achieve something special this season," Here Is The City's Damien Lucas wrote after the game, and it's true: He's the offensive key, the spark, and this was not a game the Hammers should be losing.

The 28-year-old did lift one excellent ball in for a great Andy Carroll chance, but aside from that, he was eerily quiet.

4. Mesut Ozil, Arsenal

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Last Week: 7

Differential: +3

Mesut Ozil turned in another destructive performance on Saturday, helping Arsenal overcome the challenge of Swansea City with consummate ease.

His two assists on the day—one for Laurent Koscielny, one for Joel Campbell—took his overall tally for the season to nine, per WhoScored.com. That's the most out of anyone not just in the Premier League, but across Europe's top five leagues, too.

The 27-year-old is seriously catching fire. Is there anyone left out there who still doesn't rate him?

3. Anthony Martial, Manchester United

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Last Week: 3

Differential: None

Anthony Martial was Manchester United's best attacker in the draw with Crystal Palace, producing a performance that was once again streets ahead of Wayne Rooney's.

The 19-year-old did drift in and out of the game a little and some poor showings around him (particularly from Ander Herrera) may have made him look better by comparison, but there's no denying Martin Kelly had a tough time dealing with him, and Martial's pass to release Rooney one-on-one was superb.

2. Riyad Mahrez, Leicester City

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Last Week: 4

Differential: +2

Riyad Mahrez was the benefactor of some stellar wing play by Marc Albrighton this weekend, guiding home two cute finishes after good work from his fellow winger.

The goals were his sixth and seventh of the season, and we can officially consider him back in business following a strange, short period in which he impacted only from the bench—blame Claudio "Tinkerman" Ranieri there.

1. Jamie Vardy, Leicester City

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Last Week: 1

Differential: None

Three things seem distinctly inevitable at the moment: death, taxes, and Jamie Vardy scoring in a Premier League game.

The 28-year-old netted his 11th of the season and scored in his eighth consecutive game on Saturday as Leicester City came from behind to beat West Bromwich Albion.

Searing clear of the defence using his remarkable straight-line speed, the England international kept calm and composed, slotting past the onrushing goalkeeper. It capped another impressive, energetic performance for the league's most in-form player.

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