Premier League Player Rankings: Chelsea and Manchester City Stars on the Rise
Particularly in the higher reaches, this edition of the Premier League player rankings is packed with movement. Tottenham Hotspur's awful display against West Ham United sparked a reshuffle in the 20-11 range, and with both Chelsea and Manchester City caning their opponents, Middlesbrough and Crystal Palace, respectively, almost all of their players are on the up.
Ranking Criteria
- It's a season-long ranking based on performances over the entire campaign—no longer does it take into account a four-to-six-week period of form (like previous editions did). Therefore, whoever is No. 1 would effectively be our choice for Player of the Season if the campaign finished this week.
- Only Premier League form is considered—no Champions League, no domestic cups and no international football.
- We pore over hours of film to accurately grade the players on a weekly basis. All teams are covered properly, and experts are sought out for advice as and when required.
- Players are given a score after every performance, and those scores are averaged out over the course of the season to produce a grade.
- Performing well on a consistent basis is key. Players such as Dele Alli and Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who have endured poor patches spanning months this season, have had to play catch-up in order to set the record straight.
- A player must have meaningfully participated (started or played in excess of 20 minutes) in more than 50 per cent of his team's games to be eligible for the ranking. You wouldn't christen anyone Player of the Season having played fewer than half the games.
40-36
1 of 16
40. Georginio Wijnaldum, Liverpool (-4)
For the third straight week, Wijnaldum all but disappeared in Liverpool's midfield.
39. Gylfi Sigurdsson, Swansea City (New!)
Didn't score or assist in Swansea's vital win against Everton, but he put together a game full of good set pieces and key passes.
38. Fernandinho, Manchester City (+1)
Played right-back and looked fine doing it. Nipped inside to help build play effectively, though there were times he left Vincent Kompany a touch too exposed to Wilfried Zaha.
37. Oriol Romeu, Southampton (+1)
A monster showing in midfield at Anfield, just as you'd expect. His tackles were firm and strong, setting the tone for his team's display.
36. Eric Bailly, Manchester United (Stay)
Red Devils manager Jose Mourinho rested Bailly for the defeat to Arsenal with the UEFA Europa League in sight.
35-31
2 of 16
35. Idrissa Gueye, Everton (Stay)
Wasn't particularly excellent in midfield on Saturday, but he was hardly the root of Everton's problems.
34. Wilfried Zaha, Crystal Palace (Stay)
Caused City a lot of problems when drifting out to the left and utilising the space left by Fernandinho but couldn't muster a final ball.
33. Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Manchester United (Stay)
Injured.
32. Yaya Toure, Manchester City (Stay)
Brought the effortless control and physicality to the City midfield he's almost always good for.
31. Sergio Aguero, Manchester City (Stay)
Injured.
30-26
3 of 16
30. Virgil van Dijk, Southampton (Stay)
Injured.
29. Joel Matip, Liverpool (Stay)
Kept a clean sheet on Sunday, though given Southampton barely attacked, that perhaps wasn't a tough task.
28. Adam Lallana, Liverpool (-1)
Entered the fray against Southampton late on, possibly too late to make an impact, as Jurgen Klopp's cautious approach with the Englishman's fitness continues.
27. Leroy Sane, Manchester City (+1)
Streaked down the left and into space constantly against Crystal Palace, beating his man with ease, but, like Zaha before, he couldn't compose himself at the vital moments. Still a good performance.
26. Roberto Firmino, Liverpool (-4)
Just can't play wide. At all. What's worse is that Divock Origi played even more poorly than Firmino, and it's the former whose inclusion forces the Brazilian to the wing.
25-21
4 of 16
25. Victor Moses, Chelsea (-1)
A touch unfortunate to drop one. He played well enough against Middlesbrough but wasn't utilised that often.
24. Kevin De Bruyne, Manchester City (+1)
Bagged two assists and a goal, and also struck the woodwork, in a spectacular showing against Crystal Palace. That's more like it, Kevin.
23. Marcos Alonso, Chelsea (+3)
A superb performance from Alonso was key to Chelsea battering Middlesbrough. The wing-back wreaked havoc cutting infield and even netted a goal.
22. David Luiz, Chelsea (+1)
Defensively strong, which is a requirement for anyone in Luiz's position, but he also mixed in some fantastic long passing that released runners over the top.
21. Dele Alli, Tottenham (-1)
Didn't play well against West Ham. Struggled to get involved due to a lack of space, and he couldn't produce a moment of goalscoring brilliance to hide it.
20-16
5 of 16
20. Philippe Coutinho, Liverpool (-2)
As usual, he looked the most likely to "make something happen" at Anfield on Sunday, but his shots only ever found the welcoming arms of Fraser Forster.
19. Raheem Sterling, Manchester City (Stay)
Displayed his usual selfless streak during City's 5-0 win over Crystal Palace. There's nothing wrong with it—particularly when your team is in cruise control.
18. Cesar Azpilicueta, Chelsea (+3)
Azpilicueta was brilliant in every phase on Monday night. He defended flawlessly, pushed into midfield to help move the ball in the final third, and even delivered an assist for Alonso's goal.
17. Kyle Walker, Tottenham (-3)
Like so many of his team-mates, Walker put in his worst performance of the season at the London Stadium. His flank was raided consistently and to great effect, with him struggling to get back and defend. It was like the Walker of 2012.
16. Pedro, Chelsea (+1)
Continued his relentlessly efficient season with another busy performance. Struck the bar moments into the second half.
15-11
6 of 16
15. Christian Eriksen, Tottenham (Stay)
Not his usual, magical self against West Ham. He couldn't dictate and couldn't get himself into dangerous positions.
14. Diego Costa, Chelsea (+2)
Netted the opener as Chelsea ran riot against Middlesbrough and struck fear into the defensive line, but he was probably guilty of losing the ball under his feet a little too often in the second half.
13. Harry Kane, Tottenham (Stay)
Starved of service at the London Stadium, any touches he did have in advanced areas were too heavy and soon ended up with him being dispossessed.
12. Mousa Dembele, Tottenham (Stay)
Had little time to make an impact off the bench on Friday. Maybe things would have been different for Spurs had the Belgian started, as he has a way of taking the game by the scruff of the neck and moulding it to suit him.
11. Alexis Sanchez, Arsenal (Stay)
Part of a good Arsenal performance on Sunday, but it must be stated that full debutant Axel Tuanzebe dealt with the Chilean well.
10. Danny Rose, Tottenham
7 of 16
Last Week: 10th
Movement: None
Still out of action. With just 18 Premier League appearances under his belt this season, he's on the verge of dropping out of our rankings due to not playing enough.
9. Victor Wanyama, Tottenham
8 of 16
Last Week: 9th
Movement: None
Victor Wanyama never got going against West Ham.
So often he's there, at the point of danger, in a heartbeat, dealing with it and ensuring Tottenham's defenders aren't too exposed. But on Friday, he was visibly slow to everything and failed to show his usual reading of situations.
In recent weeks, his use of the ball has been much-improved, but that regressed here, too.
8. Toby Alderweireld, Tottenham
9 of 16
Last Week: 7th
Movement: -1
On Friday night, Toby Alderweireld put in what was arguably his first and only poor performance in the Premier League so far. Considering he's nearing the end of his third season in England, that's quite the feat.
The Belgian was all over the place for most of the game, struggling with West Ham's runners from deep throughout. Things turned from bad to worse when he tried to dribble round an opponent deep in his own half, lost it, and had to rely on Hugo Lloris to bail him out in a one-on-one.
A collector's item.
7. Antonio Valencia, Manchester United
10 of 16
Last Week: 8th
Movement: +1
Antonio Valencia was rested this weekend with a definitive eye on the Europa League semi-final second leg, but he takes advantage of Alderweireld's nightmare to move up a spot anyway.
6. Jan Vertonghen, Tottenham
11 of 16
Last Week: 6th
Movement: None
No outfield Tottenham player played well against West Ham. Not one of them is excused from the criticism that inevitably headed their way after the final whistle.
Jan Vertonghen was withdrawn in the 67th minute as Mauricio Pochettino reshuffled things, and that happens to have protected his stock here a little. Spurs only got worse as the match wore on, but Vertonghen was off the pitch for the finale.
5. Ander Herrera, Manchester United
12 of 16
Last Week: 4th
Movement: -1
Ander Herrera's not been himself recently, and his so-so performance against Arsenal—the latest in a string of three—sees him slip to fifth in the rankings.
He drew Graeme Souness' unadulterated wrath on Sunday when he turned his back on Granit Xhaka's long-range strike, allowing the ball to loop up off him and over David De Gea to open the scoring. In general, he struggled to provide his trademark, energetic stamp on proceedings as United were overrun.
4. Sadio Mane, Liverpool
13 of 16
Last Week: 5th
Movement: +1
Sadio Mane moves up a spot (despite being injured) because Ander Herrera's last two Premier League appearances necessitate his moving down.
In related news, Liverpool could have done with the winger in their 0-0 draw vs. Southampton.
3. David Silva, Manchester City
14 of 16
Last Week: 3rd
Movement: None
Don't for one second believe it's a coincidence that Manchester City drew the two recent games David Silva missed injured, then strode to a thumping 5-0 victory in the one he returned in. He is the catalyst for success in that midfield.
Before exiting the fray after 68 minutes, the Spaniard put on a passing and creativity clinic, opening holes he had no right to find in the Crystal Palace defence and causing havoc. He also netted the opener, bringing up 50 goals in City colours.
2. N'Golo Kante, Chelsea
15 of 16
Last Week: 2nd
Movement: None
Fresh from receiving the FWA Football Writers' Player of the Year award on Sunday night, N'Golo Kante was rewarded with...a seat in the stands for Chelsea's match against Middlesbrough.
In truth, it wasn't the type of game he'd have been especially needed for.
1. Eden Hazard, Chelsea
16 of 16
Last Week: 1st
Movement: None
Monday night brought a rare sight: Eden Hazard being outshone by not just one, but several colleagues as Chelsea romped to victory.
The Belgian played well, creating chances and drifting around the pitch in a dangerous fashion, and he teed up Pedro to strike the bar just seconds after the second half started.
But Alonso, Azpilicueta, David Luiz and Cesc Fabregas all played better. Hell, even Nemanja Matic might have. Perhaps that speaks to how complete a performance it was from the Blues more than anything else.
All statistics via WhoScored.com
