Premier League Player Rankings: Ozil Falls, Payet Enters, Firmino Rises
Get excited, people. The Premier League treated us to the lesser-spotted double gameweek last week and it's had quite the effect on the top 20.
This edition covers both the midweek fixtures last week and this most recent weekend of action, including Liverpool's big win over Manchester City, West Ham United's incredible comeback at Goodison Park and, of course, the not-so-small matter of the north London derby.
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
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Dropping Out
Christian Fuchs, Leicester City: Kept a clean sheet at the weekend, but Fuchs' burst of form has now dissipated.
Shinji Okazaki, Leicester City: His influence on the Leicester team is on the wane for now.
Petr Cech, Arsenal: Injury necessitates his removal.
Honourable Mentions / On The Radar
Cheikhou Kouyate, West Ham
Giannelli Imbula, Stoke City
Andrew Surman, Bournemouth
Emre Can, Liverpool
Charlie Daniels, Bournemouth
20. Wes Morgan, Leicester City
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Last Week: Unranked (New!)
Wes Morgan has been so solid and so steady he can consider himself unlucky not to have featured more prominently in the rankings up to now.
His combative, never-say-die attitude has shone through in recent weeks as, against all odds, Leicester City have continued to win and continued to shut teams out en route to the title.
At the weekend he did superbly against Odion Ighalo (who is always a handful), and in midweek he handled West Bromwich Albion's man-mountain Salomon Rondon about as well as anyone has done.
19. Michail Antonio, West Ham United
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Last Week: Unranked (New!)
Michail Antonio has scored in each of his last three Premier League games. Two of those were decided by just a single goal, making him West Ham's bonafide match-winner as we approach the home stretch of the season.
The concern with Antonio—at least with regard to him entering the top 20—is that he's been monstrous at Upton Park, but he has tended to come up empty away from home. But his strike at Everton this weekend started an epic comeback, and he excelled last week (in both games) as a makeshift wing-back.
Four of the Englishman's last six Premier League appearances have been very good.
18. Sergio Aguero, Manchester City
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Last Week: 20th (+2)
Never mind a game of two halves, Sergio Aguero had a week of two halves.
Against Liverpool he was ineffectual, starved of service and blocked out of the game; but against Aston Villa he was absolutely scintillating, taking the relegation-bound visitors' defensive line apart with great movement.
He scored two and missed a penalty for the hat-trick, striking the post. It's enough to cover up the poor night in Liverpool and lift him up two spots.
17. Harry Kane, Tottenham Hotspur
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Last Week: 17th
Put frankly, Harry Kane was on his way out of these rankings this week...but then the north London derby happened.
The perfect tonic to a poor, wasteful midweek performance is an incredible derby goal, and that's what the Englishman provided: a curling, lashed shot that beat David Ospina all ends up, sending Tottenham Hotspur 2-1 up at the time.
The team didn't hold on for the win, but Kane's overall performance was excellent, holding the ball, feeding runners and outmuscling markers. It's enough to keep him in 17th.
16. Dimitri Payet, West Ham United
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Last Week: Unranked (New!)
Dimitri Payet has been absolutely dynamite of late, scoring and assisting regularly and spearheading West Ham's unlikely top-four charge.
He enters the ranking on the back of a run of three brilliant games in seven days, playing a key role in the defeats of Sunderland, Tottenham Hotspur and Everton.
His driving runs, powerful presence and wand of a foot are all utilised superbly by Slaven Bilic, who gives the Frenchman the keys and lets him pick whichever lane he fancies.
15. Ross Barkley, Everton
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Last Week: 11th (-4)
Ross Barkley has been steadily dropping in our ranking for several weeks, and it's probable he's one more average performance away from falling out the bottom.
In midweek Everton beat Aston Villa convincingly, but Barkley wasn't really a part of it. In truth, Idrissa Gueye largely nullified him between the lines and stopped him from dictating.
At the weekend he played OK in a deeper role, but was, of course, a firm part of the epic collapse that saw West Ham score three inside 15 minutes and win the game.
14. Diego Costa, Chelsea
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Last Week: 12th (-2)
Diego Costa was a bit quiet against Norwich City last week, starved off service and unable to get on the ball anywhere near as much as you'd like. He still scored, helping the Blues win the game, but he was unequivocally offside in the build-up and the goal shouldn't have counted.
Guus Hiddink rested him at the weekend in the hope of preserving him ahead of Chelsea's UEFA Champions League clash with Paris Saint-Germain, and Bertrand Traore scored a screamer in lieu of him at the No. 9 position.
13. Virgil Van Dijk, Southampton
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Last Week: 13th
Southampton as a collective were very poor against Bournemouth in midweek. That point was illustrated by Ronald Koeman's tactical substitution after 35 minutes.
That left Virgil van Dijk a lot of ground to make up at the weekend, and he answered in emphatic fashion. A dominant defensive performance, which featured a whopping 12 aerial duels won, per WhoScored.com, followed—and he scored the last-minute equaliser, lashing a brilliant strike home in the aftermath of a Dusan Tadic cross.
12. Dele Alli, Tottenham Hotspur
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Last Week: 9th (-3)
Mauricio Pochettino has admitted Dele Alli is playing through the pain barrier, per the Guardian, ignoring several niggles and knocks to take to the field for Tottenham Hotspur.
That's admirable and brave—not that Alli would want to miss any of these crucial games—but it has impacted his performances, with his influence, energy and ability to conjure the spectacular all on the wane.
He's one to watch in this ranking for the wrong reasons; he may drop out if things don't pick up.
11. Romelu Lukaku, Everton
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Last Week: 14th (+3)
Romelu Lukaku bagged two goals in two games last week for Everton and added a nice assist against West Ham to boot. Sadly, he also missed a penalty, knocking his stock somewhat.
Against Aston Villa he scored one but could have had more, imposing himself on the game and making himself the fulcrum of the attack; against the Hammers he was very effective, having a direct hand in making it 2-0 with just 15 minutes to go.
Had he not missed his spot kick at 2-0 against West Ham—a moment that proved pivotal in the visitors' incredible comeback—he'd have vaulted into the top 10.
10. Cesc Fabregas, Chelsea
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Last Week: 6th (-4)
That'll teach you to rest Cesc Fabregas, Guus! Chelsea took on Stoke City on this weekend without the services of their Spanish string-puller and paid the price, turning in their first thoroughly average performance in a while.
In midweek he played the full 90 minutes against Norwich City but didn't look that convincing, though that's probably due to the fact he was alongside Nemanja Matic, who looks thoroughly broken at this point.
All of this, in addition to some spectacular performances from those ranked beneath him, equate to a drop of four in the rankings.
9. Christian Eriksen, Tottenham Hotspur
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Last Week: 7th (-2)
It's arguable Christian Eriksen was one of few bright spots in a dismal midweek experience for Tottenham Hotspur, as he was one of the only players to really get his foot on the ball against West Ham.
Against Arsenal he dropped off a bit, trying quite hard to get things going in midfield but often failing, and his set-piece delivery was rather off.
By no means was he poor, but other players emerged as key in his stead and his recent level of influence wasn't present.
8. Willian, Chelsea
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Last Week: 8th
Willian played just six minutes in Chelsea's win over Norwich City last week, with Guus Hiddink giving him a calculated rest at a key point in the season. With Paris Saint-Germain on the horizon, the last thing you want is your player of the season burnt out.
He came back into the side against Stoke City and played well despite the fact the team only drew, driving forward in typical Willian style and troubling the Potters' defence.
7. Roberto Firmino, Liverpool
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Last Week: 16th (+9)
Roberto Firmino picked a good time to put in two strong performances, using the double gameweek to leap up the rankings and place inside the top 10 for the first time this season.
Midweek against Manchester City he—along with several other Liverpool players—was absolutely brilliant, grabbing a goal and an assist in a lovely all-round performance. His link play, clever passing and killer instinct were all on show.
Against Crystal Palace he wasn't nearly as good, admittedly, but seized upon an error to score an equaliser and worked extremely hard to press and regain possession where possible.
6. N'Golo Kante, Leicester City
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Last Week: 4th (-2)
Please don't break, N'Golo Kante. You've had a phenomenal season, and if your body starts to wilt now there's no telling what that might do to Leicester City's title charge.
The Frenchman missed the midweek draw with West Bromwich Albion due to a hamstring injury—an ailment that was projected to keep him out of his side's next two games, according to Claudio Ranieri (h/t Goal)—but he came back early for the Watford game. He was good, but not great.
5. Toby Alderweireld, Tottenham Hotspur
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Last Week: 5th
We felt a bit sorry for Toby Alderweireld (and Kevin Wimmer) in midweek, as Tottenham Hotspur's all-too-open midfield led to the central-defensive partnership experiencing all sorts of pressure against West Ham.
They conceded and were left hanging on a bit, then against Arsenal another two were conceded—a game in which Danny Welbeck's channel runs really stressed Alderweireld in particular.
Fortunately for the Belgian, he scored the vital equaliser in the derby, lifting Spurs back on track, and his long-range passing was superb. It enables him to stick in fifth.
4. Mesut Ozil, Arsenal
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Last Week: 1st (-3)
Mesut Ozil's stay at the top of the rankings lasted just a week. It's always tough to hold on—particularly in a double gameweek—but the truth is the German surrendered it rather meekly.
He wasn't able to break down Swansea City's deep-set defensive wall midweek, then at the weekend in the north London derby he was eerily quiet, rarely getting on the ball in good areas and losing the physical battle, unsurprisingly, against Mousa Dembele and Co.
3. Riyad Mahrez, Leicester City
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Last Week: 10th (+7)
Welcome back to the top five, Riyad Mahrez. The Algerian winger delivered two excellent performances this past week and skips up the ladder as a result.
This was much more like the irresistible Mahrez we've come to know and love this season; his incredible agility, creativity and goal threat were all on show as the Foxes picked up four points from six—and he had a direct hand in both results.
His flicked assist for Andy King against West Bromwich Albion was gorgeous, and his strike to give Leicester City the win over Watford absolutely phenomenal.
2. Mousa Dembele, Tottenham Hotspur
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Last Week: 2nd
Mousa Dembele missed Tottenham Hotspur's midweek game against West Ham and they lost it 1-0. Perhaps predictably, they missed his presence, drive and controlling manner in midfield.
He came back in for the north London derby on Saturday and excelled, dominating entire sections of the pitch and gliding through challenges with ease. He also put the foot down on the defensive side of things, chipping in with seven tackles and two interceptions, per WhoScored.com.
There's no doubting it at this point: Dembele is the heartbeat of Spurs' midfield.
1. Jamie Vardy, Leicester City
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Last Week: 1st (+2)
Jamie Vardy did everything but score in his past two games. The fact that he didn't isn't so much of a problem, as his team picked up four points from six and edged five ahead in the Premier League title race regardless.
His all-round play and channel-running continues to astound, with his direct sprints in behind against Watford really stretching the defence and forcing Heurelho Gomes into some awkward actions.
He smacked the bar against West Bromwich Albion in midweek, created a few good chances and clipped a lovely cross in for Riyad Mahrez to make a hash of right at the death.
With Mesut Ozil underperforming, Mousa Dembele only playing one game and N'Golo Kante losing a step this week, all of this is enough to lift Vardy back to the summit.
