Best Players in the Premier League Right Now [Ranked]
Following a summer packed to the brim with international football – namely the Euro 2024 and Copa America – and a litany of incomings and outgoings across the Premier League’s 20-strong contingent, the campaign is back underway and already 15 gameweeks down.
Liverpool have started the season strongly under Arne Slot, while Manchester City and Arsenal have struggled to keep pace, and the likes of Manchester United have flattered to deceive, with Erik ten Hag becoming the first managerial casualty when he was replaced with Ruben Amorim over the November international break.
Moments of individual brilliance tend to shape a side’s aspirations for the season and, despite only being in the early stages of the campaign, there have been a plethora of instances when players have lifted bums off seats so far.
Taking that into consideration alongside the following ranking factors, here are the top 20 best Premier League players, in order, as the likes of in-form players such as Ryan Gravenberch and Chris Wood narrowly miss out.
Ranking Factors
How well they’ve started the current Premier League season.
Their performances since arriving in the English top flight.
Importance to their respective sides.
For forwards – goals and assists have been taken into account.
Memorable performances from recent seasons.
20-16
Dejan Kulusevski, Ibrahima Konate, Bryan Mbuemo, Matheus Cunha, Gabriel Magalhaes
Winger-turned-midfield conductor Dejan Kulusevski, thanks to his fast start to proceedings in 2024/25, sees him just crack the top 20 – but it’s not just his assists that get him this berth. He has been Tottenham’s lynchpin early this term, and he played an understated but crucial role in a 3-0 victory at Old Trafford and a 4-0 demolition job at the Eithad.
An imposing figure at the back for Liverpool, Ibrahima Konate’s commanding aura – combined with his intangible ball-playing qualities – easily make him one of the best centre-backs in the Premier League right now, and he cracks 19th place on this list ahead of the likes of Ruben Dias and Ben White.
The beating hearts of Brentford and Wolves, Bryan Mbuemo and Matheus Cunha have also been in red-hot form this term. While the Bees talisman has nine goal contributions in 12 league appearances, Cunha – despite Wolves enduring the most difficult set of fixtures to start the campaign has managed to register seven goals and three assists as Gary O’Neil’s sides have worked their way up from the bottom of the table in recent weeks.
Arsenal’s Gabriel Magalhaes, who ‘has an aura’ around him in north London but is often overshadowed by William Saliba, finds himself in the top 20 thanks to his brilliant displays and goalscoring touch of late – especially with the Frenchman having been out of action for parts of this season already.
The Best Premier League Players – 20-16
Rank
Player
Position
Club
Nationality
20.
Dejan Kulusevski
CM
Tottenham Hotspur
Sweden
19.
Ibrahima Konate
CB
Liverpool
France
18.
Bryan Mbeumo
RW
Brentford
Cameroon
17.
Matheus Cunha
ST
Wolverhampton Wanderers
Brazil
16.
Gabriel Magalhaes
CB
Arsenal
Brazil
15-11
Bernardo Silva, Phil Foden, Son Heung-min, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Alisson Becker
Talent wise, Bernardo Silva deserves to be higher up the list – but given the star-studded nature of his side, he often goes under the radar. The Portuguese, one of the best midfielders in the English top flight, is able to play through the middle or on the right flank and is one of Pep Guardiola’s Swiss Army Knives.
Meanwhile, his teammate, Phil Foden, who was 2023/24’s Premier League Player of the Season, also stuggles to make the grade in the top 10. Stockport-born, the Manchester City ace has won all there is to win at the age of 24 – but has made a very slow start to the 2024/25 campaign and has seldom been utilised by Guardiola since his return from Euro 2024.
Without Harry Kane leading the line, Tottenham Hotspur have often relied on Son Heung-min to come up with the goods in times of need. Unphased by the weight of the armband, the seasoned left-winger has helped make Ange Postecoglou’s transition from Scottish to English football look seamless at times.
A divisive figure among Premier League aficionados, there can be no qualms over Trent Alexander-Arnold’s natural talent. Able to place the ball on a sixpence, the Liverpool-born right-back is recognised as one of the best passers in world football, having notched 85 assists across his 327-game Anfield career. He’s also found his way back into international team reckoning after winning three Man of the Match awards under interim boss Lee Carsley.
Since arriving from AS Roma in the summer of 2018, there have been few – if any – shot-stoppers that have been able to replicate the exploits of Alisson Becker between the sticks. Not only has he won everything there is to win, but his varied skill set makes him such a unique and important player for Liverpool, although his absence doesn’t show this as Caoimhin Kelleher is always up to the task.
The Best Premier League Players – 15-11
Rank
Player
Position
Club
Nationality
15.
Bernardo Silva
CAM
Manchester City
Portugal
14.
Phil Foden
CAM
Manchester City
England
13.
Son Heung-min
LW
Tottenham Hotspur
South Korea
12.
Trent Alexander-Arnold
RB
Liverpool
England
11.
Alisson Becker
GK
Liverpool
Brazil
10-6
Martin Odegaard, Kevin De Bruyne, Declan Rice, William Saliba, Rodri
Martin Odegaard, whose ability to control and, therefore, dictate the tempo of a game, sees him reside in 10th place on the list. Should an injury not have hampered his season, limiting him to fewer minutes of action, and there’s every chance he’d be pushing even further up the ranks with how good he’s been since returning.
The Norwegian, 25, has been pivotal to Mikel Arteta’s aspirations of winning Arsenal’s first Premier League for two decades and, galvanised by the responsibility of the armband, could be the difference maker if the north Londoners are to achieve Premier League greatness in years to come.
Purely in terms of passing, long or short, there may not be a better player on the planet than the talismanic Kevin De Bruyne, who is regarded as one of the greatest midfielders in Premier League history. And despite missing a large part of the current season and last, the Belgian magician is just as effective when gracing the turf.
Declan Rice’s move to Arsenal had fans wondering whether he’d be able to replicate his West Ham United exploits – but, well, of course he has. As dynamic as ever, the Englishman has performed like a ticking metronome in the London club’s engine room and has gone from strength to strength, adding a layer of goals to his game.
Nobody foresaw what William Saliba would achieve in Arsenal colours after a series of loan spells elsewhere. Defensively imperious, it would be difficult to find a centre forward on earth – including none other than Erling Haaland – that could give the Bondy-born gem a difficult day at the office.
Despite having limited Premier League game time thus far in 2024/25, Spain and Manchester City midfield maestro Rodri is one of the standout options as the top flight’s best player. Combative, comfortable in possession and a player who often weighs in with an important goal, the ex-Atletico Madrid man is unrivalled among his positional peers. His poorly-timed ACL injury means he falls just short of the leading five. However, if he wasn’t injured, there’s a case out there to suggest he could be number one after winning the Ballon d’Or.
The Best Premier League Players – 10-6
Rank
Player
Position
Club
Nationality
10.
Martin Odegaard
CAM
Arsenal
Norway
9.
Kevin De Bruyne
CAM
Manchester City
Belgium
8.
Declan Rice
CDM
Arsenal
England
7.
William Saliba
CB
Arsenal
France
6.
Rodri
CDM
Manchester City
Spain
5-1
Erling Haaland, Virgil van Dijk, Cole Palmer, Bukayo Saka, Mohamed Salah
Kickstarting the top five is the inevitable Erling Haaland, formerly of Borussia Dortmund. A goalscoring machine of the highest order, the Norwegian record breaker has entered the new campaign as prolific as ever and, if he continues to fire at the same rate, could quite easily become a Premier League great, although that golden run has dried up in recent weeks.
Regarded as one of the best centre-backs in Champions League history, the imposing Virgil van Dijk is stationed in fourth spot, taking the mantle from the aforementioned Saliba as the league’s best, and most consistent, central defender with him not missing a single minute of Premier League action this term.
Sitting in third is Arsenal poster boy Bukayo Saka. The Hale End graduate, regarded as his side’s most important player, has lacked sufficient cover in his position and, as such, has been an ever-present for Arteta in recent seasons – but his output has never waned. Instead, it has been boosted in Odegaard’s absence across 2024/25 with him taking on the responsibility of being his side’s creator-in-chief, too.
Where would Chelsea be without the ever-reliable Cole Palmer? The courage to take the jump from Manchester to west London was commendable – but the 22-year-old’s 27-goal haul from last season proves he made the right choice. He has continued his fine form this term, notching 11 goals and six assists in 15 top flight outings. Officially, at the time of writing, only one player has contributed more – what a phenomenal talent Enzo Maresca has at his disposal.
Foden, Bellingham and Saka
Related
Ranking the 9 English Players Most Likely to Win the Ballon d’Or
Several English players might be in contention to win the Ballon d’Or in the coming years.
Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah has been a revelation since joining the Reds in 2017, becoming the club’s record scorer in the Premier League. While many thought that he’d drop off in the post-Jurgen Klopp era, the Egyptian has started the season like any other, doing what he does best: bamboozling defenders and contributing to shedloads of goals. With him taking part in just over 70% of Liverpool’s goals this season as they sit four points clear at the top of the table, there’s no doubt he’s the best player in the Premier League right now, if not the world!
The Best Premier League Players – 5-1
Rank
Player
Position
Club
Nationality
5.
Erling Haaland
ST
Manchester City
Norway
4.
Virgil van Dijk
CB
Liverpool
The Netherlands
3.
Bukayo Saka
RW
Arsenal
England
2.
Cole Palmer
RW/CAM
Chelsea
England
1.
Mohamed Salah
RW
Liverpool
Egypt
All statistics in this article per Transfermarkt – correct as of 09/12/24.
