Last season, Man City’s Kevin De Bruyne ran a one-man show in the Premier League, but things seem slightly different now. With only 8 games played in this season so far, some players have been pulling the strings, indicating fans will witness a far more balanced season.
Following a thorough analysis, we went deep into data and stats to pick the top-five players of the league thus far. Feel free to disagree with them and to leave your opinions on our picks.
5 – Jack Grealish
We kick off this list with the Aston Villa Maestro. Jack Grealish, the player who dragged Villa to promotion and saved them from relegation, has been at it again this season. Villa have consolidated themselves in the PL this season after demolishing reigning champions Liverpool 7-2 – a game in which Grealish bagged twice.
Grealish’s outstanding Premier League performances granted him England National Team call ups. Analysing Grealish’s stats, the Villa captain has scored 4 goals and recorded 5 assists.
However, not only from stats is a player made. The importance of Jack Grealish to Aston Villa is immense. Right now, they sit 6th in the league, thus, outside of the top four. However, they have a game in hand, and could potentially overtake Leicester at the top, as the gap between 1st and 6th places is only 3 points.
Grealish is the system at Villa, and if he’s able to keep this pace to the end of the season, the Lions will thrive in the PL.
4 – Edouard Mendy
Defensive deficiencies have been Chelsea’s Achilles heel since last season. Aware of this major drawback, Frank Lampard led the Blues in the transfer window and made the club’s chairman Roman Abramovic to splash the cash to bring in important pieces.
However, none of them was as dominant as this low-profile goalkeeper.
Coming from Ligue 1 side Rennes, Edouard Mendy has stepped up from day 1 at Chelsea and taken over the goalie position from Spaniard Kepa Arrizabalaga, who’s been slaughtered by Chelsea supporters for his constant howlers between the sticks.
Taking a look at the stats, Mendy has played 4 Premier League games for Chelsea thus far and has kept 3 clean sheets. The Senegal International matched a 10-year clean sheet record at the Stamford Bridge club, as they couldn’t keep three clean sheets in a row since the Petr Cech era, back in 2010.
Chelsea went from conceding silly goals to having a goalkeeper that adds stability and confidence to their back-line, and that’s the reason Mendy has made it to this list.
3 – Danny Ings
From Liverpool’s injury-prone back-up striker to Southampton’s main man, Danny Ings has bounced back from a horrendous moment at Liverpool to strike up a renaissance in his football career at the Saints.
Before getting into the Englishman’s stats, it’s interesting to mention that Southampton have been leading the Premier League for one day this season. It happened on the verge of the November International break, as they beat Newcastle 2-0 at home.
Ings surely played a major role in it, scoring five vital goals for Southampton in the Premier League campaign so far. Whether the Saints will keep it up until the end or not, is a whole ‘nother story. It’s been a great journey for them thus far though, as, with 8 games played, they sit fourth in the table.
As for Danny Ings, he has real chances of fighting for the Premier League Golden Boot this season, and due to this shiny league start, he’s another pick for this list.
2 – Jamie Vardy
Last season’s Premier League Golden Boot winner, Jamie Vardy is on fire once again. This time, the Foxes’ number 9 has been commanding his club’s front, scoring 8 goals in 7 appearances.
Vardy’s frenetic Premier League start sent Leicester to the top of the Premier League, on 18 points out of 24. The England International is directly responsible for half of Leicester’s goals this season. As this wasn’t enough, Vardy shares the top of the Golden Boot race this season with another three players, all of them with 8 goals each.
Since that 2015/16 Premier League season where the Foxes lifted their 1st ever League trophy, Vardy has been a standout. The famous “Jamie Vardy is having a party” song echoed in every corner of the world, and if the striker leads Leicester to yet another PL, he will 100% write his name in the club’s history.
1 – Harry Kane
If we are to rank players by their importance to their clubs, then this man would top every list of the kind thus far. Harry Kane has managed to score 7 goals and record 8 assists in the PL this season. These are outrageous stats from the Hurricane, who’s been involved in 15 out of Spurs’ 19 goals in the league this season.
The in-form Englishman is simply tearing the league apart, and his performances brought Jose Mourinho’s men to 2nd place.
If the Spurs have never won the Premier League, this would be maybe their best chance. With reigning champions Liverpool and Man City both not as inspired as in the last couple of seasons, the North-London team are keen on a special front-three formed by Bale, Son & Kane to bring it home.
Obviously, we are just at the beginning of the 2020/21 league, and there’s a lot yet to come, both in terms of players and clubs. These are our picks for the top players of the Premier League season thus far.
