Premier League Player Rankings: Ighalo Out, Mahrez Down, Fabregas Up
Another enthralling weekend of Premier League football appears to have confirmed two remarkable realities: Tottenham Hotspur are firmly in this title race, while Manchester United may miss the top four altogether. The performances in these key games have been crucial to deciding another week's top 20.
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 one-week wonders do not find their way in. That said, if, for example, Sergio Aguero returns from injury and excels in four straight games, he will find his way in—if a player plays very well, they can cut the queue.
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
1 of 21
Dropping Out
Odion Ighalo, Watford: Has had one good game in five. It's fizzled out for him a little.
Gerard Deulofeu, Everton: How quickly things can change in football. Deulofeu, despite playing so well, has lost his place to Aaron Lennon (who is performing superbly, to be fair).
Bacary Sagna, Manchester City: It is as we feared. He is now sharing the right-back slot with Pablo Zabaleta and does not play enough games to justify a spot in the rankings.
Honourable Mentions / On The Radar
Dimitri Payet, West Ham United
Fraser Forster, Southampton
David de Gea, Manchester United
Ryan Bertrand, Southampton
Cesar Azpilicueta, Chelsea
20. Shinji Okazaki, Leicester City
2 of 21
Last Week: 20
Differential: None
Shinji Okazaki was the victim of a strange Claudio Ranieri substitution on Sunday, withdrawing earlier than expected due to a forced defensive reshuffle.
Danny Simpson's red card forced Leicester City into ultra-defensive mode ,and they became stuck in their own third. Ranieri tried to add more legs by sacrificing Okazaki for Demarai Gray, but the change had no positive tangible effect.
We'll let Okazaki fight another day in the player rankings as a result.
19. Sergio Aguero, Manchester City
3 of 21
Last Week: 16
Differential: -3
Sergio Aguero moves down three spots in our ranking after putting in what was, regrettably, a poor showing against Tottenham Hotspur last weekend.
The one big chance that fell to him he scuffed well over the bar, and although the ball did take an awkward loop, it was a terrible effort on goal.
His overall approach play was lacking, and he was starved of service for periods too.
18. Christian Fuchs, Leicester City
4 of 21
Last Week: 15
Differential: -3
Christian Fuchs had a bit of a nightmare on Sunday. It was his first bad game in about three months, but it came on an untimely weekend as far as Leicester City are concerned.
His flank was consistently overrun by Arsenal as the Foxes lost in north London, with Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain finding room to run and cross due to Fuchs defending so narrowly.
The equalising goal from Theo Walcott originated from his flank.
17. Willian, Chelsea
5 of 21
Last Week: Unranked
Differential: New!
Willian has been Chelsea's best player this season by a distance, but not content with that (admittedly hollow) title, he's pushing to get better and better as the campaign rolls on.
Right now, under Guus Hiddink, it's arguable he looks as good as he ever has done; he's become the linchpin of the midfield, driving forward, creating chances and beating players with consummate ease.
His one-goal, one-assist haul against Newcastle United capped yet another fine display in 2016.
16. Harry Kane, Tottenham Hotspur
6 of 21
Last Week: 17
Differential: +1
Harry Kane wasn't at his best on Sunday as Tottenham Hotspur took on Manchester City, but he did provide a defining impact in the form of a goal.
After Danny Rose's cross was (probably wrongly) adjudged to have struck Raheem Sterling's arm, Kane stepped up and despatched a cool, collected penalty to open the scoring.
According to the man himself, Joe Hart told him he knows he likes to smash them down the middle while waiting to take it, so Kane called his bluff and did just that.
15. Christian Eriksen, Tottenham Hotspur
7 of 21
Last Week: Unranked
Differential: New!
The storylines surrounding Tottenham Hotspur's rise this season have generally centred on one of three core points: Dele Alli's bravery, Mauricio Pochettino's genius, or Mousa Dembele's revenant tendencies.
The hype and buzz around these tales has allowed some on the team to fly a little under the radar, and one of those players is Christian Eriksen. He's largely been ignored this season when it has come to doling out the praise, but no longer. The Dane is in sparkling form and gains recognition for it here.
His excellent goal on Sunday secured Spurs a fifth straight victory, and his great performance was simply a continuation of the upturn in form he's enjoyed in 2016. He's excelled in recent games against Watford, Crystal Palace, Norwich and Sunderland, too.
14. Roberto Firmino, Liverpool
8 of 21
Last Week: Unranked
Differential: New!
Roberto Firmino's been simmering of late, and his excellent showing against Aston Villa this weekend is enough to catapult him into the rankings.
He assisted one and created numerous chances thanks to his movement and speed, while his defensive work ethic—robbing Villa's midfielders of the ball and starting counter-attacks—played a big part in the 6-0 scoreline.
Per Liverpool's official Twitter account, the Brazilian has had a direct hand in 12 Reds goals so far this year.
13. Romelu Lukaku, Everton
9 of 21
Last Week: 13
Differential: None
In any other week Romelu Lukaku would have moved down, but with players dropping out ahead of him, he stays put.
He got absolutely nothing out of Jonas Olsson and Co. on Saturday; West Bromwich Albion were able to limit him and his service, ensuring very little in terms of goal threat emerged.
12. Petr Cech, Arsenal
10 of 21
Last Week: 19
Differential: +7
Petr Cech gets a big boost in the ranking this week, though he's a little fortunate to receive it. With three players in the 8-11 range dropping out, some move up sharply to balance out the order.
The Czech Republic international did play well against Leicester City, though, and his recent form has been a godsend to the Gunners, so it's not entirely undeserved.
He could do nothing for Jamie Vardy's emphatic penalty, but he did make a fantastic save to deny him another, low down to his right side.
11. Virgil Van Dijk, Southampton
11 of 21
Last Week: 18
Differential: +7
Virgil van Dijk soars up the rankings this week after putting in his sixth consecutive excellent display. It's no coincidence that Southampton haven't conceded a single goal in those six games.
Fraser Forster's presence in goal has been calming and constructive—and against Arsenal earlier this month he was the sole reason they kept a clean sheet—but Van Dijk's been the first line and has protected the goal so well.
Powerful, aerially dominant and precise in the challenge, his good patches of form are seriously good.
10. Cesc Fabregas, Chelsea
12 of 21
Last Week: 14
Differential: +4
Cesc Fabregas' steep upward trajectory in form continued this weekend as he took Newcastle United apart in midfield.
His inch-perfect through balls continually caught the Magpies' defensive line off guard, and the Spaniard fed both Diego Costa and Pedro regularly as they tore in behind.
Dictating the midfield play was an easy task for the Spaniard when playing against such lifeless opposition.
9. Ross Barkley, Everton
13 of 21
Last Week: 9
Differential: None
We were torn on what to do with Ross Barkley this week: Move him down due to his wasteful shooting, or commend him for trying desperately to break the deadlock? In the end, we simply decided to keep him where he is; a compromise, if you will.
Everton took 33 shots at goal against West Bromwich Albion and lost 1-0, with Barkley accounting for nine of those, per WhoScored.com. He cracked one against the woodwork and saw most of the others blocked by some determined defending.
The Toffees were utterly dominant, but they could not find a way through.
8. Riyad Mahrez, Leicester City
14 of 21
Last Week: 6
Differential: -2
Riyad Mahrez was the unfortunate casualty of Claudio Ranieri's forced substitutions in Leicester City's loss to Arsenal this weekend, with the Algerian departing in order to provide defensive balance following Danny Simpson's red card.
He hadn't been too effective up until that point anyway, with the Foxes struggling to get the ball to his feet too often, and it's fair to say, with 10 men, Marc Albrighton was always going to defend and track more than Mahrez.
7. Diego Costa, Chelsea
15 of 21
Last Week: 12
Differential: +5
Ever so quietly, Diego Costa moved into double figures for goals in this Premier League season on Saturday, netting his 10th of the campaign against Newcastle United.
He tore through the Magpies defence with ease, latching onto through balls and beating men for speed and strength. His finish for the goal was extremely cool, too, oozing confidence and class.
It was another excellent performance from the Spain international who, in his last six divisional games, has four goals and two assists to his name.
6. Dele Alli, Tottenham Hotspur
16 of 21
Last Week: 7
Differential: +1
Dele Alli wasn't obviously brilliant on Sunday, but he got through a decent amount of work in midfield and was key to making the game a scrap. Manchester City didn't appreciate fighting tooth and nail for possession and relented for most of the first half.
Alli started from the left—hardly his strongest position—but dipped inside and interchanged, making room for Danny Rose to overlap on the flank. He also tackled well, attempting a joint-team-high six, per WhoScored.com.
5. Toby Alderweireld, Tottenham Hotspur
17 of 21
Last Week: 3
Differential: -2
Toby Alderweireld is, admittedly, a little unlucky to be moving down a few spots. His performance in a vacuum doesn't warrant it, but those just below him had to move up.
The Belgian impressed at the heart of Tottenham Hotspur's defensive line as usual, helping build momentum with some slick passing, picking out Danny Rose's forward runs with longer diagonals, and standing firm in the face of late pressure in the box.
The last few minutes were pretty hairy for the Lilywhites, but Alderweireld and Co. emerged victorious and now stand serious contenders for the title.
4. Mesut Ozil, Arsenal
18 of 21
Last Week: 5
Differential: +1
Mesut Ozil came through in the clutch for Arsenal this weekend, delivering a wonderful flat free-kick in the 94th minute that Danny Welbeck headed home.
The Germany international had struggled to influence play beforehand due to the deep-set nature of Leicester City's defensive block, but he did impress with his excellent aerial balls aimed at Olivier Giroud's head.
Even when he seems a little bit quiet, he comes up with a defining moment to shape the course of the game.
3. N'Golo Kante, Leicester City
19 of 21
Last Week: 4
Differential: +1
N'Golo Kante's first-half performance against Arsenal was one of the best you'll see this season. Simply put, it was 45 minutes of midfield mastery.
He influenced play across the pitch, dispossessed opponents with frequency and pushed forward with intent. A few of his shots had Petr Cech sprawling, while it was his surge that led to Jamie Vardy being awarded a penalty.
In the second half, he faded a little after Leicester City had a man sent off, but he was still the standout player on the pitch.
2. Mousa Dembele, Tottenham Hotspur
20 of 21
Last Week: 2
Differential: None
Mousa Dembele impressed in all the ways we've come to expect on Sunday, controlling the midfield battle in the first half and getting stuck in to disrupt the opposition's flow in the second.
It should be noted he left Kelechi Iheanacho unattended for the equalising goal, slowing to a stroll on the edge of the box and forgetting to check for a runner, but he was superb for the 89 other minutes.
Had he noted missed Iheanacho's run, he would have moved top of the rankings.
1. Jamie Vardy, Leicester City
21 of 21
Last Week: 1
Differential: None
Jamie Vardy takes a mean penalty. That fact was reinforced on Sunday when he hammered home from 12 yards to give Leicester City the lead at the Emirates Stadium.
It was his excellent run into the box that won the spot-kick, luring Nacho Monreal in for a foul, and his presence in behind was a threat all game long as usual.
His effectiveness dimmed after the Foxes were reduced to 10 men, but this goalscoring showing is enough to see him retain his place atop our rankings.
