The Premier League is the most watched league on the planet and home to the greatest players in the world.
Mohamed Salah cemented himself as one of the best wingers of all time last season, picking up the PFA Player of the Year award for a record third time. But who is the best player in the English top flight right now?
Ranking factors Current form Importance to team Reputation and honours 50-41
50. Samuel Chukwueze
Fulham
49. Ruben Dias
Man City
48. Omar Alderete
Sunderland
47. Ollie Watkins
Aston Villa
46. Virgil van Dijk
Liverpool
45. Yankuba Minteh
Brighton
44. Ismaila Sarr
Crystal Palace
43. Gianluigi Donnarumma
Man City
42. Ruben Dias
Man City
41. Jan Paul van Hecke
Brighton
40. Josko Gvardiol
Man City
The notable fallers this week, understandably, include two Liverpool players. Salah has gone from being the best player in the top-flight to someone Arne Slot can afford to drop. The Egyptian falls out of the top 50 after a week in which he claimed the club had “thrown him under the bus”. He has been on the bench in the last three games and will be off to AFCON soon.
Times are also tough for centre-back Virgil van Dijk, who looks a shadow of his former self in defence. Against Sunderland in their 1-1 draw, he allowed Chemsdine Talbi the freedom of Anfield to get his shot away. The forward’s effort deflected off Van Dijk and flew into the net. It was a moment that summed up the Dutchman’s campaign, later going on to concede three against Leeds as well.
40-31
40. Dominic Calvert-Lewin
Leeds
39. Lewis Hall
Newcastle
38. Iliman Ndiaye
Everton
37. Martin Zubimendi
Arsenal
36. Sandro Tonali
Newcastle
35. Malick Thiaw
Newcastle
34. Jeremy Doku
Man City
33. Riccardo Calafiori
Arsenal
32. Bryan Mbeumo
Man Utd
31. Granit Xhaka
Sunderland
Dominic Calvert-Lewin deservedly shoots up the rankings this week. He has struggled to find his form in recent years but has now scored in three successive games for Leeds. Has Daniel Farke finally found someone capable of saving them from relegation?
Newcastle defenders Malick Thiaw – a scorer of two goals a weekend prior – and Lewis Hall both feature inside the top 40.
30-21
30. Pedro Neto
Chelsea
29. Nico O’Reilly
Man City
28. Rayan Cherki
Man City
27. Matty Cash
Aston Villa
26. Jack Grealish
Everton
25. Dominik Szoboszlai
Liverpool
24. Enzo Fernandez
Chelsea
23. Nick Woltemade
Newcastle
22. Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall
Everton
21. Antoine Semenyo
Bournemouth
Antoine Semenyo is one of the biggest fallers in recent weeks. During the opening months of the term, the Cherries winger looked like one of the best players in the league. Now, however, he’s failed to register a goal involvement across his last seven matches.
Elsewhere, Nico O’Reilly soars up the rankings following an impressive few weeks for Manchester City while Everton midfielder Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall is into the top 30 having netted three goals in his last four games.
20-11
20. Jean-Philippe Mateta
Crystal Palace
19. David Raya
Arsenal
18. William Saliba
Arsenal
17. Morgan Rogers
Aston Villa
16. Eberechi Eze
Arsenal
15. Gabriel Magalhaes
Arsenal
14. Daniel Munoz
Crystal Palace
13. Bukayo Saka
Arsenal
12. Elliot Anderson
Nottingham Forest
11. Mikel Merino
Arsenal
The most underrated player in world football right now is quite possibly Mikel Merino. Mikel Arteta has transformed the Spaniard from a duel-winning monster in midfield to an elite number 9. He has scored vital headers against Chelsea and Brentford across recent game weeks and features inside the top 20.
It’s been a trickier few weeks for the Gunners, hence why the likes of Eberechi Eze and Gabriel Magalhaes have both dropped out of the top ten.
10 Marc Guehi – Crystal Palace
Denied his move to Liverpool in the summer, Guehi has responded in emphatic fashion at Crystal Palace. He’s one of the finest centre-backs in the country and has even added goals to his game this term, scoring that last-gasp winner against Fulham last weekend.
9 Bruno Guimaraes – Newcastle
There are not many more influential midfielders or captains in the Premier League right now than Newcastle’s Bruno Guimaraes. He scored from a corner against Burnley last weekend, only cementing himself as a true icon at St James’ Park.
8 Jurrien Timber – Arsenal
Is there a better right-back in world football right now than Timber? We don’t think so. The Netherlands international has made Arsenal’s right flank his own and has been tremendous across the last few weeks, notably registering an assist in the Gunners’ big win against Spurs and then even filling in at centre-half against Brentford and Aston Villa.
7 Moises Caicedo – Chelsea
Caicedo may well have been sent off for a late challenge on Merino during Chelsea’s 1-1 draw with the Gunners but he’s still very much one of the best in the division. Red card aside, he has been phenomenal in 2025/26.
6 Igor Thiago – Brentford
Only second to Erling Haaland in the Premier League’s scoring charts, Igor Thiago is enjoying quite the season as Keith Andrews’ leading man. He has scored nine goals in his last ten outings for the Bees.
5 Reece James – Chelsea
All of the talk this season has been about how good Declan Rice and Caicedo are but James has more than proven he’s a match for both players in midfield. delivering a man of the match performance against Arsenal a few weeks ago.
4 Phil Foden – Manchester City
When Phil Foden is on, he is on it. The 2023/24 Premier League Player of the Year had a quiet campaign by his standards in 2024/25 but he’s finally rediscovering his mojo. Foden scored a brace against Leeds United and Fulham before finding the net versus Sunderland last weekend.
3 Bruno Fernandes – Man United
Put a little quality around him and suddenly you see the real Bruno. The United skipper has easily been one of the finest assets in the top-flight this term and his performance against Wolves proved it. During that game he scored twice and also registered an assist as Ruben Amorim’s side won 4-1 at Molineux.
2 Erling Haaland – Man City
While the fierce Norwegian has blanked in recent matches against Newcastle, Leeds and Sunderland, he did score in that ridiculous 5-4 win over Fulham, also assisting twice. Haaland is absolutely unstoppable and is on track to obliterate the record for goals in a 38-game Premier League season.
1 Declan Rice – Arsenal
Adding end product to his game over the last 12 months, Rice is perhaps the standout midfielder in world football at present. Adding another assist to his tally against Tottenham, Arsenal’s number 41 dominated proceedings in the North London derby and his partnership with Martin Zubimendi looks virtually unplayable.