EPL 100: Ranking of Premier League's Best Players After Matchday 29
Any Premier League week with a double dose of Manchester City in it is a spectacular one, and on Thursday night they produced the sort of flowing football Pep Guardiola is famous for. His players continue to dominate the upper reaches of our EPL 100, but only top four of the seven categories.
We have updated our lists to take into account the latest gameweek of action. They are divided into seven position groups and based solely on performances in the Premier League in 2017-18.
To be eligible, a player must have taken part in at least half the games his team has played.
Goalkeepers
1 of 7
Manchester City's shining performance against Arsenal last Thursday even extended to goalkeeper Ederson Moraes, who showed his usual expert touch in possession and saved a penalty.
Sunday afternoon against Chelsea was a far quieter affair for him, though, as the Blues failed to muster a single shot on target.
Thibaut Courtois drops a few spots this week after bizarrely flopping to the floor just before conceding to Bernardo Silva and producing some fairly wretched, rushed distribution at the Etihad Stadium.
Chelsea struggled to play any form of football against City, and the Belgium international hacking it aimlessly clear played a part in that.
Biggest rise: Hugo Lloris (+2)
Biggest fall: Thibaut Courtois (-2)
| Rank | Player | Club |
| 1 | Ederson (Stay) | Manchester City |
| 2 | David De Gea (Stay) | Manchester United |
| 3 | Nick Pope (Stay) | Burnley |
| 4 | Lukasz Fabianski (+1) | Swansea City |
| 5 | Hugo Lloris (+2) | Tottenham Hotspur |
| 6 | Thibaut Courtois (-2) | Chelsea |
| 7 | Jordan Pickford (Stay) | Everton |
| 8 | Kasper Schmeichel (Stay) | Leicester City |
| 9 | Mat Ryan (Stay) | Brighton & Hove Albion |
| 10 | Asmir Begovic (Stay) | Bournemouth |
Right-Backs/Right Wing-Backs
2 of 7
The biggest mover among the right-backs this week is Matthew Lowton, who turned in a brilliant performance as Burnley beat Everton 2-1. His through ball for Ashley Barnes' equaliser was a beauty.
Lowton and perhaps Cedric Soares aside, though, there weren't any particularly strong showings from this position this week.
Kyle Walker strolled through his match with ease, Joe Gomez and Kiko Femenia didn't feature and both Hector Bellerin and Victor Moses struggled.
Biggest rise: Matthew Lowton (+2)
Biggest fall: Multiple (-1)
| Rank | Player | Club |
| 1 | Kyle Walker (Stay) | Manchester City |
| 2 | Antonio Valencia (+1) | Manchester United |
| 3 | Victor Moses (-1) | Chelsea |
| 4 | Kieran Trippier (Stay) | Tottenham Hotspur |
| 5 | Matthew Lowton (+2) | Burnley |
| 6 | Kiko Femenia (-1) | Watford |
| 7 | Joe Gomez (-1) | Liverpool |
| 8 | Cedric Soares (+1) | Southampton |
| 9 | Hector Bellerin (-1) | Arsenal |
| 10 | DeAndre Yedlin (Stay) | Newcastle United |
Left-Backs/Left Wing-Backs
3 of 7
The top two are pulling away here. Ben Davies and Andrew Robertson both contributed to their teams' respective 2-0 wins on Saturday, supporting attacks and defending well. They're in a mini-league of their own at the moment.
Further down, Fabian Delph skips above Marcos Alonso despite not playing, as the latter had a bit of a nightmare against Manchester City's Bernardo Silva.
Ryan Bertrand still looks like Southampton's best creator—a worrying statement if you're a Saints fan—and he was in good form in the 0-0 draw with Stoke City.
Biggest rise: Multiple (-1)
Biggest fall: Multiple (-1)
| Rank | Player | Club |
| 1 | Ben Davies (Stay) | Tottenham Hotspur |
| 2 | Andrew Robertson (Stay) | Liverpool |
| 3 | Fabian Delph (+1) | Manchester City |
| 4 | Marcos Alonso (-1) | Chelsea |
| 5 | Ryan Bertrand (-1) | Southampton |
| 6 | Ashley Young (-1) | Manchester United |
| 7 | Stephen Ward (Stay) | Burnley |
| 8 | Sead Kolasinac (Stay) | Arsenal |
| 9 | Gaetan Bong (Stay) | Brighton & Hove Albion |
| 10 | Charlie Daniels (New!) | Bournemouth |
Centre-Backs
4 of 7
The fact there are about 12 pretty poor teams in the Premier League means the centre-back section is a hard one to fill out each week. The lack of shining quality is so apparent at times.
The task has been made even harder this week with John Stones dropping out due to a lack of games, meaning there are some slightly unnatural upward shifts at the top.
Among the better performers this week were Lewis Dunk, Virgil van Dijk, Kurt Zouma and Alfie Mawson; among the worst were Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen.
Biggest rise: Multiple (+5)
Biggest fall: James Tomkins (-3)
| Rank | Player | Club |
| 1 | Jan Vertonghen (Stay) | Tottenham Hotspur |
| 2 | Cesar Azpilicueta (Stay) | Chelsea |
| 3 | Nicolas Otamendi (+2) | Manchester City |
| 4 | James Tarkowski (+3) | Burnley |
| 5 | Ben Mee (+1) | Burnley |
| 6 | Andreas Christensen (-2) | Chelsea |
| 7 | Davinson Sanchez (+2) | Tottenham Hotspur |
| 8 | Jamaal Lascelles (Stay) | Newcastle United |
| 9 | Nacho Monreal (+1) | Arsenal |
| 10 | Lewis Dunk (+5) | Brighton & Hove Albion |
| 11 | Harry Maguire (+3) | Leicester City |
| 12 | Christopher Schindler (-1) | Huddersfield Town |
| 13 | Kurt Zouma (+5) | Stoke City |
| 14 | Antonio Rudiger (-2) | Chelsea |
| 15 | Virgil van Dijk (+2) | Liverpool |
| 16 | Phil Jones (-2) | Manchester United |
| 17 | Alfie Mawson (+2) | Swansea City |
| 18 | Shane Duffy (+2) | Brighton & Hove Albion |
| 19 | James Tomkins (-3) | Crystal Palace |
| 20 | Dejan Lovren (New!) | Liverpool |
Defensive Midfielders/Central Midfielders
5 of 7
David Silva's two majestic showings last week, against Arsenal and Chelsea, further entrench him in the No. 1 spot, and it's starting to feel like none of the others have any hope of catching him now.
The absence of N'Golo Kante or Fernandinho (injuries) was a big factor in none of the top five moving, but there are plenty of subtle shifts further down.
Lewis Cook, Davy Propper, Emre Can and Mousa Dembele all impressed to varying degrees, while Cesc Fabregas did not.
Biggest rise: Lewis Cook (+3)
Biggest fall: Cesc Fabregas (-2)
| Rank | Player | Club |
| 1 | David Silva (Stay) | Manchester City |
| 2 | Fernandinho (Stay) | Manchester City |
| 3 | N'Golo Kante (Stay) | Chelsea |
| 4 | Paul Pogba (Stay) | Manchester United |
| 5 | Nemanja Matic (Stay) | Manchester United |
| 6 | Abdoulaye Doucoure (Stay) | Watford |
| 7 | Mousa Dembele (+1) | Tottenham Hotspur |
| 8 | Aaron Ramsey (-1) | Arsenal |
| 9 | Emre Can (+1) | Liverpool |
| 10 | Mario Lemina (-1) | Southampton |
| 11 | Eric Dier (Stay) | Tottenham Hotspur |
| 12 | Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (Stay) | Liverpool |
| 13 | Jack Cork (Stay) | Burnley |
| 14 | Lewis Cook (+3) | Bournemouth |
| 15 | Georginio Wijnaldum (-1) | Liverpool |
| 16 | Wilfred Ndidi (Stay) | Leicester City |
| 17 | Cesc Fabregas (-2) | Chelsea |
| 18 | Aaron Mooy (Stay) | Huddersfield Town |
| 19 | Davy Propper (+1) | Brighton & Hove Albion |
| 20 | Jonathan Hogg (-1) | Huddersfield Town |
Attacking Midfielders/Wingers
6 of 7
For the first time in a while we have movement among the top five in this section, with contrasting performances from Leroy Sane and Eden Hazard on Sunday meaning the two swap places.
Although Manchester City didn't really skip a beat while Sane was injured, his return has made them a far more potent outfit, and you have to wonder if any right-back in the world could handle him in this sort of form.
Hazard, meanwhile, has been effectively neutered by Antonio Conte as he drifts around up front, alone, an afterthought of the plan.
Biggest rise: Heung-Min Son (+5)
Biggest fall: Multiple (-3)
| Rank | Player | Club |
| 1 | Kevin De Bruyne (Stay) | Manchester City |
| 2 | Mohamed Salah (Stay) | Liverpool |
| 3 | Leroy Sane (+2) | Manchester City |
| 4 | Raheem Sterling (Stay) | Manchester City |
| 5 | Eden Hazard (-2) | Chelsea |
| 6 | Christian Eriksen (Stay) | Tottenham Hotspur |
| 7 | Sadio Mane (+1) | Liverpool |
| 8 | Riyad Mahrez (+2) | Leicester City |
| 9 | Mesut Ozil (-2) | Arsenal |
| 10 | Jose Izquierdo (+3) | Brighton & Hove Albion |
| 11 | Jesse Lingard (Stay) | Manchester United |
| 12 | Alexis Sanchez (-3) | Manchester United |
| 13 | Juan Mata (+1) | Manchester United |
| 14 | Heung-Min Son (+5) | Tottenham Hotspur |
| 15 | Anthony Martial (-3) | Manchester United |
| 16 | JB Gudmundsson (Stay) | Burnley |
| 17 | Bernardo Silva (New!) | Manchester City |
| 18 | Dele Alli (+2) | Tottenham Hotspur |
| 19 | Marc Albrighton (-1) | Leicester City |
| 20 | Xherdan Shaqiri (-3) | Stoke City |
Strikers
7 of 7
It's as you were in the striker's section, with no player doing enough to move up or down.
That's a product of three players (Wilfried Zaha, Alvaro Morata and Gabriel Jesus) playing either no part or a small one due to injury and many of the others not scoring.
Our top three all decided to turn creator this week, with each of Harry Kane, Roberto Firmino and Sergio Aguero impressing more for their passing and link play than their finishing.
Biggest rise: None
Biggest fall: None
| Rank | Player | Club |
| 1 | Harry Kane (Stay) | Tottenham Hotspur |
| 2 | Roberto Firmino (Stay) | Liverpool |
| 3 | Sergio Aguero (Stay) | Manchester City |
| 4 | Romelu Lukaku (Stay) | Manchester United |
| 5 | Jamie Vardy (Stay) | Leicester City |
| 6 | Alvaro Morata (Stay) | Chelsea |
| 7 | Wilfried Zaha (Stay) | Crystal Palace |
| 8 | Gabriel Jesus (Stay) | Manchester City |
| 9 | Glenn Murray (Stay) | Brighton & Hove Albion |
| 10 | Marko Arnautovic (Stay) | West Ham United |
All statistics via WhoScored.com
