Premier League Player Rankings: Lukaku, Kane, Vardy, Mahrez Shine
The Premier League's return this weekend brought goals, goals and more goals. Thirty in total were produced over 10 games, averaging three per match, with Everton, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur bagging four each.
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
1 of 21
Hector Bellerin, Arsenal: Lost form as Arsenal have.
Yaya Toure, Manchester City: He was withdrawn at half-time in the loss to Liverpool, rubber-stamping his decline in form.
Francis Coquelin, Arsenal: Ruled out for at least two months, Coquelin must drop from the rankings.
20. Odion Ighalo, Watford
2 of 21
Last Week: 19
Differential: -1
Odion Ighalo clings on by the skin of his teeth after another average performance. He's firmly on the chopping block—unless he excels next week, he'll drop out.
Watford panicked in the second half and failed to feed him the right balls, but he did squander one great breaking opportunity after good work from Etienne Capoue. The Ighalo turn fooled Chris Smalling, but the finish was ugly.
He did have a hand in the penalty, though, ensuring the day wasn't all bad.
19. Jack Butland, Stoke City
3 of 21
Differential: 20
Last Week: +1
Jack Butland wasn't called into action much from a shot-stopping perspective this weekend, but other elements of his natural talent shone through instead.
His command of the box and clear hand in organising the defence helped build a solid Stoke City platform from the back.
Squeezing out a clean sheet and a win at St. Mary's Stadium against Southampton is pretty impressive going.
18. Ross Barkley, Everton
4 of 21
Last Week: Unranked
Differential: New!
Ross Barkley's fine season continued with a brilliant performance against Aston Villa. It's enough to bring him into our top 20 again, but can he hold on to the spot?
Consistency has been an enemy of his in his short career to date, but in this campaign he's evidently been getting better and better as the weeks go by.
If he can drop the iffy games and perform at this level every week, Roy Hodgson will be shoe-horning him into his England XI however possible.
17. Philippe Coutinho, Liverpool
5 of 21
Last Week: Unranked
Differential: New!
Philippe Coutinho's been threatening to affirm a return to form for a few weeks now, and with some rest under his belt during the international break, he came out firing at the Etihad Stadium.
He and Roberto Firmino were absolutely superb, pressing and harrying from the front and forcing errors from Manchester City.
Coutinho picked up a goal and an assist for his troubles, ensuring he entered our Team of the Week too.
16. Gerard Deulofeu, Everton
6 of 21
Last Week: Unranked
Differential: New!
Beware Gerard Deulofeu: He's finding form and murdering teams from the flank, but he's still flying somewhat under the radar while doing so.
His pace and trickery blend to make a lethal combination, and his latest victim was Kieran Richardson, who likely won't be the same player ever again after chasing him around all game on Saturday.
Deulofeu's form has been bubbling, and now he's entered the top 20.
15. Nicolas Otamendi, Manchester City
7 of 21
Last Week: 15
Differential: None
Nicolas Otamendi was rested for Manchester City's loss to Liverpool due to the travelling he did over the international break, and his absence was clear to see. Eliaquim Mangala and Martin Demichelis floundered in his place.
14. Romelu Lukaku, Everton
8 of 21
Last Week: 17
Differential: +3
Romelu Lukaku was at his finest on Saturday, reminding Aston Villa fans of just how effective a muscular, speedy Belgian can be up front for a Premier League side.
He fed off Gerard Deulofeu's excellent work on the right and Ross Barkley's penetration through the middle, scoring two goals—one in each half—to cement Everton's superiority in the fixture.
"He has incredible potential. And I would say the maturity he is showing this season is even more impressive than the record," Roberto Martinez said after the game, per the Daily Mail.
13. Virgil Van Dijk, Southampton
9 of 21
Last Week: 10
Differential: -3
Virgil van Dijk had a decent day on the ball for Southampton, making a few good runs forward in possession to try and stretch Stoke City in defence. Ultimately, though, he couldn't make an impact at either end.
Bojan Krkic's goal was pretty much unstoppable, and going forward in search of an equaliser, the Potters did a good job of matching Van Dijk aerially and removing his dominance from the picture.
He'll have far better days.
12. Harry Kane, Tottenham Hotspur
10 of 21
Last Week: 16
Differential: +4
Harry Kane scored two goals against West Ham to cap another brilliant performance. This hot streak of form reminds us of last season's breakout, and it's becoming clearer and clearer—even to the haters—that he is no one-season wonder.
His first finish was a stabbed, predatory effort, while his second was an opportunistic strike from distance that had a little help from Winston Reid.
His overall performance was top class; leading the line, causing issues off the ball and bullying with his strength.
11. Chris Smalling, Manchester United
11 of 21
Differential: 14
Last Week: +3
Chris Smalling's afternoon was pretty easy, in truth. Watford didn't test Manchester United too much (despite scoring one goal), and they actually played into the Englishman's hands.
Balls pumped up to Odion Ighalo and Troy Deeney from the back were cleared by Smalling over and over; aerial battles are his bread and butter.
Louis van Gaal switched to a three-man defence part way through the game—a formation the team has struggled with in the past—but still no issues were really experienced.
10. Bacary Sagna, Manchester City
12 of 21
Last Week: 8
Differential: -2
The day after B/R chose Bacary Sagna as one of the Premier League's most under-rated performers of the season so far, he puts in a limp showing as Manchester City fall to Liverpool. That's football.
The defensive line as a whole were awful, and while Sagna was hardly the prime culprit, his hesitancy in a one-on-one situation—something he's usually so strong at—cost the opening goal.
A blip for the Frenchman.
9. Graziano Pelle, Southampton
13 of 21
Last Week: 6
Differential: -3
It's not often Graziano Pelle turns in a dud performance on the St. Mary's turf, but there's scope for just about everything to go wrong during a 90-minute football match. Saturday was one of those days for the Italian.
He struggled to influence play as Saints failed to dominate, and while he was let down by Dusan Tadic's extremely disappointing day in midfield—robbing him of service—he didn't manage to tip the scales himself.
He had a good penalty shout ignored, but apart from that, he was a little too quiet for our liking.
8. Mousa Dembele, Tottenham Hotspur
14 of 21
Last Week: 13
Differential: +5
Mousa Dembele continues to shoot up the rankings after putting in another stunning performance this weekend.
West Ham are a tough nut to crack due to the physicality they boast in midfield, but Dembele provided a match in strength for them and wove his usual magic on the ball.
Whether it was breaking forward and linking play or tracking back to stop attacks, he excelled at it all. All-action.
7. Fernandinho, Manchester Ciry
15 of 21
Last Week: 7
Differential: None
Manchester City's match with Liverpool was the first Premier League game Fernandinho did not start this season—and they lost 4-1.
Like Nicolas Otamendi, it's possible Manuel Pellegrini opted to rest the Brazilian due to the travelling factor. The City boss was forced to play his hand at half-time, though, sending Fernandinho on in place of the lacklustre Yaya Toure.
The damage, sadly, was already done.
6. Kevin De Bruyne, Manchester City
16 of 21
Last Week: 9
Differential: +3
"He never stopped trying to get things moving, even though those around him were largely not on his wavelength," the Manchester Evening News said of Kevin De Bruyne after Manchester City's thrashing at the hands of Liverpool.
He, Sergio Aguero and Joe Hart were really the only three Citizens who escaped the massacre with any credit to their name, with De Bruyne trying hard to force his side back on track. It's for this reason he's so consistent: He doesn't duck out when the going gets tough.
He's fortunate to move up, helped by City colleagues previously above him in the ranking not playing well.
5. Anthony Martial, Manchester United
17 of 21
Last Week: 4
Differential: -1
Anthony Martial left Wembley on crutches following England's win over France and, as a result, missed Manchester United's win over Watford.
4. Eric Dier, Tottenham Hotspur
18 of 21
Last Week: 3
Differential: -1
Eric Dier was by no means a star performer as Tottenham Hotspur trounced West Ham on Sunday, but his impact was nevertheless felt.
The physical edge he brings to Mauricio Pochettino's midfield is tactically important, helping Spurs wrestle the game into submission and dictate the pattern of play.
The Hammers' usually robust midfield—starring the excellent Cheikhou Kouyate—was beaten out of shape by Dier and Co., providing a platform for a dominant 4-1 win.
3. Riyad Mahrez, Leicester City
19 of 21
Last Week: 5
Differential: +2
Riyad Mahrez took it upon himself to remind us he is also having a fantastic season on Saturday, putting in a man-of-the-match performance as Leicester City battered Newcastle United.
He picked up one assist after a trademark slaloming run and cross for Leonardo Ulloa and looked a dangerous threat all game, taking poor stand-in left-back Paul Dummett to the cleaners.
One particular run saw him trounce three players and enter the box only for Jamie Vardy to fire the lay-off onto the bar.
2. Mesut Ozil, Arsenal
20 of 21
Last Week: 2
Differential: None
"Mesut Ozil set a new Premier League record on Saturday as his free-kick for Olivier Giroud’s headed opener against West Brom saw him record an assist for the seventh straight match, becoming the first player in the top flight to do so," Jack de Menezes of the Independent confirmed.
Andrew Mangan of uMAXit Football has praised the German for his outrageous form, suggesting it transcends his team's own poorer performances and helps grind out results every week.
That wasn't the case here, but in truth, Arsenal really were exceptionally unlucky to come away with nothing.
1. Jamie Vardy, Leicester City
21 of 21
Last Week: 1
Differential: None
Jamie Vardy secures his place atop the Premier League player rankings for the fifth consecutive week after another rumbustious display.
His goal at St. James' Park drew him level with Ruud van Nistelrooy's record of scoring in 10 consecutive Premier League games—though Vardy is the only one to do it in a single season, as the Dutchman's was spread over two—and the performance matched the feat.
Brimming with confidence, the Leicester man tore Newcastle's defence apart using pace and directness, carving out several chances and leaving Fabricio Coloccini in his dust.
