When we last did this in December, Mohamed Salah was the best player in the league and the entire globe. He is still the best player in the league and the entire world as of March.
However, Manchester City has fallen and then somewhat risen since our last rankings. Chelsea has battled their way down from the top two and into the top five or so. We have seen the ascent of Crystal Palace, Nottingham Forest, Newcastle, and Bournemouth. Tottenham collapsed almost entirely. It seems like Manchester United has already collapsed. And all of a sudden, Arsenal’s title challenge collapsed.
Who is responsible for all of the volatility that we have witnessed outside of the top and bottom of the table, then?
We’re back with the fourth Premier League Top 50 for the 2024–25 season in an attempt to address those queries.
A brief explanation of our ranking system
As always, this is a combination of statistics, my intuition, previous rankings, and the wisdom of the crowds. It’s nearly impossible to use numbers to get anywhere close to a player-value ranking that is relevant for all positions, even though I would feel a little more comfortable evaluating players at a single position or at a specific facet of the game using only data.
I thus reviewed the December rankings, eliminated the ailing players, added the healthy players, and then reorganised them in what I believed to be the proper order. In order to identify any significant points of dispute, I then looked at a variety of metrics, most notably Michael Imburgio’s DAVIES model, which attempts to value everything that occurs on the ball. (There were, reader.) From there, I made modifications.
To be sure I wasn’t significantly out of agreement, I then compared that with the crowdsourced values on Transfermarkt. I then made a few more little changes to reward players with a lengthy history of success and those who were playing well in the matches with the highest leverage (for good teams).
You can view the outcome below.
Who simply missed and who fell out of the rankings?
Rúben Dias, Emiliano Martínez, Brennan Johnson, Darwin Núñez, and André Onana were all removed from the roster due to performance-related issues. Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli, Kai Havertz, Nicolas Jackson, and Manuel Akanji are all out due to injuries. Kyle Walker has also left this list and moved to Italy for transfer-related reasons.
I thought I’d give a shout-out to a number of guys that were considered but were simply overlooked because this is a highly subjective exercise with a strict cut-off.
In some ways, during the past two months, Crystal Palace has been the best team in England. Nearly every member of their starting lineup who isn’t on the list below is deserving of a shoutout. Mikkel Damsgaard and Nathan Collins of Brentford have both been outstanding. Although Nottingham Forest would have a number of names in the top 100, they were not included on this list. Jarrad Branthwaite and James Tarkowski, Everton’s centre backs, have both had excellent seasons.
Bournemouth have a handful of other guys who could’ve made the cut, Morgan Rogers is a weird-but-very-effective player for Aston Villa, and Jarrod Bowen has to do a ton to keep West Ham’s attack afloat. Many members of Arsenal’s squad would also rank among the top 100.
The Top 50, however, is calling immediately.
50. James Maddison (down 16), Tottenham’s attacking midfielder
49. Fulham’s unranked offensive midfielder Alex Iwobi
Iwobi has made 64 passes into the penalty area this season, which is one more than Trent Alexander-Arnold and second in the league after Salah. Iwobi, who departed North London six years ago, is the former player who most would have aided the Gunners this season despite the outrage about Arsenal’s lack of depth following other squad member exits this summer.
48. Newcastle full-back Lewis Hall (unranked)
47. Crystal Palace centre-back Marc Guéhi (unranked)
46. Bournemouth centre-back Dean Huijsen (unranked)
He is in the 78th percentile for progressive passes, the 91st percentile for progressive carries, the 99th percentile for interceptions, and the 72nd percentile for aerial duels won out of all centre backs in Europe’s Big Five leagues during the last 365 days. He’s 19 as well!
The fact that a teenager can perform this well in what is arguably the most physically demanding position in the world is absolutely ridiculous. Spanish centre backs could replace French centre backs, as Pau Cubarsi did the same at Barcelona at a much younger age.
45. David Raya, Arsenal’s goalie (down 7)
44. Tottenham’s attacking midfielder Dejan Kulusevski (down 2)
I think he’s the most difficult player in the league to grade. He could thrive at Arsenal, Manchester City, or Liverpool, in my opinion. He possesses the wide range of abilities that those clubs are looking for. He’s also an excellent presser. However, I feel that he loses his usefulness for extended periods of time.
Kulusevski is the league’s best one-touch passer according to PFF FC’s ratings.
43. Liverpool forward Alisson (unranked)
For the past two seasons, he hasn’t performed well in the Premier League. And until he put on what may have been his finest Liverpool performance to date against PSG earlier this week, I was going to knock him out of the top 50:
In that game, he stopped 2.26 goals from shots and stopped several low, risky pullbacks that were skidding across the penalty area. When Liverpool played PSG, they were terrible. They ought to be eliminated from the competition, but because of Alisson, they are presently tied with Real Madrid (according to ESPN BET) to advance from their bracket.
42. Manchester City attacking midfielder Bernardo Silva (down 22)
41. Liverpool’s Andrew Robertson (up six), full-back
Last time, I thought about benching him, but his defensive mistakes have started to go away, and he appears to be settling into his new role as a ball-progressor from deep rather than a bomb-forward over-lapper.
Even though he’s receiving far less progressive passes, he’s still moving the ball forward and showing creativity, which would normally be excellent for a fullback if the player on the other side wasn’t challenging our preconceptions of what a fullback is capable of.
In addition to all of that, despite his upcoming 31st birthday, he leads Liverpool in sprints this season.
40. Manchester City offensive midfielder Kevin De Bruyne (down 27).
39. Tottenham goalie Guglielmo Vicario (unranked)
at the Premier League, goalkeeping seems to be at a strange place. It has been some time since Alisson was a consistently excellent goalie. Emi Martinez is regarded as one of the best in the world, but his uneven performance belies that reputation. Although Ederson appears to be washed up, his league-wide shooting statistics have improved from the time when many believed he might be the best player in the world.
Vicario, who has given up 6.4 fewer goals than anticipated over the last two seasons—by far the best record in the Premier League—is my choice for the top spot.
38. Jan. Paul van Hecke (up three), Brighton’s centre back
I’m beginning to question whether the concerns over van Hecke’s defensive prowess are really relevant at this time. According to PFF FC, he has made 223 line-breaking passes this season. He has tried line-breaking passes 89% of the time, which is second in the league among players with at least 150 completed, and it is the second-highest percentage in the league.
His passing grade is 99.0, or almost perfect, when he is not under pressure.
37. Manchester City forward Omar Marmoush (unranked)
36. Brentford forward Yoane Wissa (unranked)
Only Erling Haaland, Mohamed Salah, and Alexander Isak have scored more non-penalty anticipated goals than Wissa this season. Not too awful.
35. Chelsea’s Levi Colwill (down 2), centre-back
34. Newcastle winger Anthony Gordon (unranked)
33. Wolves forward Matheus Cunha (up 17)
So far this season, Cunha… and the top two players on this list are the only three players in the league with at least six non-penalty expected goals and six expected goals assisted.
32. Bournemouth forward Dango Ouattara (unranked)
31. Cody Gakpo, Liverpool forward (up 12).
30. Liverpool midfielder Curtis Jones (up 10)
More than any other player considered for the Top 50, he has completed 92% of his passes under pressure.
29. Crystal Palace offensive midfielder Eberechi Eze (up eight)
28. Chelsea midfielder Enzo Fernández (up seven)
27. Manchester City offensive midfielder Phil Foden (down 5)
According to Imburgio’s DAVIES model, Foden finished 15th in the league last season for predicted goals added over average. This year? He is now in 66th place.
26. Tottenham forward Son Heung-Min (down 14).
25. Manchester City winger Savinho (up 7)
Despite appearances, his first year at City has been excellent. Only 4.2 xG, or expected objectives, have been transformed into a single objective by him:
However, in terms of total xG produced by passes and shots, he ranks second on City. Even though Savinho doesn’t move the ball as much as Jeremy Doku, it appears that his passes and carries frequently result in real, risky opportunities. And he’s only twenty. If Savinho stock existed, I would purchase it.
24. Aston Villa forward Ollie Watkins (up 1)
23. Moisés Caicedo, Chelsea midfielder (down 9)
22. Bournemouth forward Antoine Semenyo (unranked)
Could this be too low?
He has 155 possessions in the box, which is more than anybody else save Salah and ties him with Haaland, according to PFF FC. On every physical criteria, he is in the upper echelons. In terms of aerials won, he is in the 98th percentile among players in his position. As of now this season, he and Haaland are tied for the most shots attempted. In terms of take-ons accomplished, he ranks fourth in the league.
He is the most crucial member of Bournemouth, which is undoubtedly one of the top teams in the league.
21. Aston Villa midfielder Youri Tielemans (up 28)
Tielemans is having a career year after being demoted with Leicester and then primarily appearing on the bench the previous season.
He has tried 334 line-breaking passes, which is almost 70 more than anyone else, according to PFF FC. He is tied for the highest percentage among players with at least 150 line-breaking attempts, trying them in 22% of all passes. More than anyone else in England, he has executed 259 line-breakers. In addition, he has travelled the second-most mileage of any player in the league.
20. Brentford forward Bryan Mbeumo (up 4) is the only player this season to accelerate at least 1,500 times. And if you look closely enough, you can spot a player who is similar to Mo Salah—a fantastic outlet who can also score goals and pass and carry. This season, everything is excellent except for the underlying figures.
19. Brighton winger Kaoru Mitoma (down 1)
18. Liverpool midfielder Ryan Gravenberch (up 1)
Gravenberch has the league’s highest ball carrying grade, 90.4, according to PFF FC. Not only that, but when he’s racing with the ball, he’s tough to get off it.
This season, Liverpool seemed to have had a bit more control because to Gravenberch’s ability to receive passes on the turn. They maintain possession across the back line, and then Gravenberch suddenly pushes play forward by sneaking past two midfielders. We can now trace the fact that he has opened his body and received 187 passes! That’s second only to Cole Palmer in the league.
17. Liverpool midfielder Alexis Mac Allister (unaltered)
16. Liverpool’s attacking midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai (up 10)
15. Manchester United attacking midfielder Bruno Fernandes (down 2)
He represents everything that is wrong with Manchester United and is essentially the only positive aspect of the team. He has completed the most passes over the top of the opponent defence and made the second-most pressures of any player in the league, according to PFF FC. Both of those things shouldn’t be done by the same player!
14. Gabriel Magalhães (up 1), Arsenal’s centre-back
13. Liverpool forward Luis Díaz (down 2)
12. Bruno Guimarães (up six), Newcastle midfielder
I doubt I would dispute if you wanted to rank him in the top five. A few statistics:
• 40 defensive-line-breaking passes were completed, the most in the league; 208 line-breaking passes were received, the second-highest in the league.
• The league’s highest distance travelled, 298.47 kilometres
He is all-pervasive, and he is transforming that presence into obvious benefit. His defenders find gaps between the lines for him to receive passes, which he then transforms into passes that break apart the rival defence. He’s simply amazing.
11. Liverpool’s Ibrahima Konaté (unranked), centre-back
10. Newcastle United forward Alexander Isak (up 21)
9. Declan Rice, an Arsenal midfielder (unaltered)
8. Arsenal’s attacking midfielder Martin Ødegaard (down 4)
No one else in the league is better at fusing inventiveness with ball retention.
Because they are attempting many of the more challenging passes that move the ball into the most dangerous areas of the field, everyone else who plays a lot of passes into the box and creates a lot of chances also has a relatively low pass completion %. Odegaard has completed 83% of his passes this season and during his professional career, but not this time. Despite just playing roughly 1,500 minutes, he is fourth in the league in defensive-line-breaking passes completed.
The question of who is more significant, Saka or Odegaard, was resolved this season, although Arsenal’s captain is still among the greatest players in the world.
7. Manchester City full-back Josko Gvardiol (up 20)
I may be exaggerating, but this season, Gvardiol has done almost everything. He’s a fantastic athlete, ranking in the top 15 for maximum speed. In addition, he is among the world’s best fullbacks. And he’s 180, 6-1? I’m not sure. Aside from, say, playing one-on-one against Lionel Messi at a World Cup, he appears at ease in almost any position and circumstance you can put a player in on a football pitch.
For a while, I thought that because of his size and the position’s relative importance, he would eventually return to centre back. He undoubtedly looked like a centre defender who was compelled to play fullback last season. But this year, he looks like a huge, game-changing fullback. With by far the team’s most progressive passes, he is City’s most crucial ball progressor. Furthermore, he is third on the team in terms of actual goals and fourth in terms of predicted goals.
In addition, he leads in blocks, interceptions, and clearances and is second in tackle attempts. Compared to Phil Foden, he has more touches within the other team’s penalty area. Additionally, he has outperformed all of his colleagues in aerial duels, winning 63% of them.
6. Arsenal’s William Saliba (up 2), centre-back
Before your 24th birthday, might you bore us with your excellence? Saliba has, I believe.
Ever since he took on the team’s uniform, Arsenal has been a defensive powerhouse. And when he was hurt two seasons ago, their backline came apart. Despite their inability to score goals this season, Arsenal’s defence has remained the best in the world.
The centre back I placed higher than Saliba said, “If I’m honest, when I was that age, I was nowhere near where he was today.”
5. Liverpool full-back Trent Alexander-Arnold (up 1)
“Expected assists” basically rewards players for each pass they make, whereas “expected goals assisted” just counts passes that were converted into shots. To put it another way, how frequently is a pass converted into a goal when it is completed into a particular area?
With 6.6 predicted assists, TAA is third in the league, after Salah and Palmer. Leif Davis of Ipswich Town has the second-highest number of defenders in the league (3.8). You earn a place in our top five when you are nearly twice as skilled as everyone else in your position at doing what is arguably the most crucial task in the sport.
4. Liverpool centre-back Virgil van Dijk (up three).
He has the league’s second-best challenge grade (88.9), according to PFF FC. His aerial-duel grade of 92.3 is the highest. Out of all players with at least 150 line-breaking pass attempts, he has completed almost 90% of them, making him the best. Additionally, according to FBref, his throws have advanced the ball 14,173 yards—more than all but two other league players. He has completed 92% of his passes, which makes a significant difference. 65% and 75% are the two men in front of him.
Creating greater attacking space by learning to defend inside their own third for extended periods of time is a key component of Liverpool’s success. The main reason they are able to do that is because of their leader.
3. Erling Haaland, Manchester City forward (down 1)
This year is slow. Around him, the team is disintegrating. Everyone appears to be playing out of place or is elderly. This is the first time in Pep Guardiola’s career that he appears unsure on what to do. In terms of non-penalty goals and non-penalty projected goals, Haaland continues to dominate the league.
2. Chelsea attacking midfielder Cole Palmer (up 3) According to PFF FC, two players in the league have passing and shooting grades higher than 85. Palmer is the player on this list who is one spot ahead of him. Even though he hasn’t played as well as he used to in recent months, he has been incredibly talented this season in practically every offensive play area. In almost every other season, it’s a season worthy of Player of the Year.
1. Mohamed Salah, Liverpool forward (unaltered)
It would have resembled Salah this season if Lionel Messi had ever played in the Premier League.
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