The Premier League is home to a host of football megastars, increasingly so as the money in the game ramps up and draws in more of the world’s finest.
In years gone by, Real Madrid and Barcelona were the head-turners, now it feels like once players land in the English top flight, they spend their peak time in it.
But who are the best of the best? Debates over the top players in the Premier League will never be settled, nor is there an objectively correct answer.
We set out to round up the best Premier League players, across all positions, based on a variety of factors. We have taken into account historical performances and this season’s displays on the whole, while trying not to be swayed by short-term dips and bursts of form.
Some of the players on this list have underwhelmed in 2021/22 so far, but that shouldn’t undo their status among the elite.
RadioTimes.com brings you the top 10 best Premier League players at the start of 2022.
10. N’Golo Kante (Chelsea)
There is no midfielder quite like N’Golo Kante in full flow. It feels as though he’s fallen out of fashion in 2021/22 but that has mostly been due to injury issues.
He remains a dynamic, hustling, hassling, heat-seeking missile in the heart of midfield, able to run the midfield and recycle the ball well. The Premier League is Kante’s bleep test and everyone else is living in it.
9. Son Heung-Min (Tottenham)
Son feels intensely overlooked on the world stage. He has been a consistent, rising force with Spurs yet very rarely attracts much attention beyond what he does on the field.
He experienced a poor start to the campaign, but immediately picked up following the arrival on Antonio Conte. He’s a wonderful footballer with a smile that reminds you why people get into the game to begin with. Simply, Son loves it.
8. Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool)
Yes, we totally understand that filtering defenders and attackers in the same list is an arbitrary process, but Van Dijk simply must nail down a place in this list.
All is not peachy with the Reds’ backline, but we all know how impenetrable Van Dijk can be in full swing. He is the archetypal modern defender, as comfortable Rolls Roycing forwards with the ball as he is sitting back and breaking up onslaughts.
7. Joao Cancelo (Manchester City)
Arguably the player of the season so far across the whole Premier League, Joao Cancelo has stepped up his game to a whole new stratosphere.
To call him a world class full-back would be reductionist. He is so much more than a right-back, a left-back. He is effectively a quarter-back, if we resided on the other side of the Atlantic. Cancelo is responsible at the back, but his roaming drifts forward are very often fruitful endeavours. Give him any space on the edge of the final third and he will see, pick and play the right pass. An incredible talent.
6. Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United)
In years gone by, Ronaldo would have topped this list without question. This is very much late-stage Ronaldo we’re witnessing, his final form, his last evolution. And it’s still a great variation.
He simply knows how to find the net. On air and land, he is a menace. Arguments over whether he fits into Manchester United’s squad and style of play are not for this article. As a standalone player, there are few you’d rather have pull on your shirt.
5. Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United)
If this list were based on 2021/22, Fernandes would be nowhere to be seen, but we all know just how good he can be for long, long stretches of the season.
Has he been unsettled by Ronaldo’s arrival? Have others simply not exploited his stream of ammunition? That’s not for us to say here. What we do know is that Bruno is the heartbeat of any in-form Manchester United team. A threat on all fronts, from range, in the box, scoring goals, creating them, set-pieces, the full works.
4. Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool)
A right-back revolutionary, Alexander-Arnold constantly basks in the glow of praise from Gary Neville, to the former Man Utd pundit’s own detriment. Neville adores TAA and already rates the Liverpool lad above his own level.
Alexander-Arnold’s technique, whether he’s crossing the ball into the box, striking the ball into the net, or drilling it into panic zones for defenders to worry about, is simply sublime. His continued development will be fascinating to watch.
3. Harry Kane (Tottenham)
[Tin hat on] Harry Kane remains one of the best football players in the Premier League and the world. You know I’m right.
The Spurs man has racked up an astonishing 170 goals in just 259 Premier League games and still has a shot at Alan Shearer’s fabled 260 total. He has endured a poor season so far, but it’s probably his only truly bad streak of form since, well, he started out. Kane remains a lethal talisman with superb playmaking skills behind the frontline.
2. Mohamed Salah (Liverpool)
This season, there is no question that Mohamed Salah is the No.1. He’s the undisputed best of the best in the Premier League and arguably the world.
Salah’s penetrating runs can cripple any defence. His acceleration, sudden changes of pace and direction have given more than a few elite full-backs nightmares and ultimately, his goals and assists output is unmatched in 2021/22. He could be interchangeable with the N0.1 on our list. In fact, at the end of writing this paragraph, we very nearly changed our mind!
1. Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City)
Salah is a superb, powerful, direct runner with immense pace and uses this all to fantastic effect. However, we’ve gone with De Bruyne as our No.1 for his sheer range of skills.
De Bruyne can sit deeper, he can roam forward, he can fill in much higher up the pitch, he can drift out wide or stay central. His range of passing is bewildering for players and fans alike. His vision is figuratively 20:20. His long-range drives are deadly. His crossing is probably the best the Premier League has ever seen.
And then there’s is physicality, an often overlooked aspect of De Bruyne’s game. He’s strong and quick. De Bruyne is the ultimate midfield package. He’s had an injury-riddled time, but KDB is our Premier League top dog.
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