Kevin De Bruyne. Erling Haaland. Martin Odegaard. It’s a simple job to list the Premier League’s best players so far this season, but what about those stars shining outside the league’s biggest clubs?
With the help of WhoScored.com’s average match ratings, here’s the ten top performing players who don’t play for a traditional ‘Big Six’ side…
Kieran Trippier - Newcastle United (7.7 rating)
The king of fantasy football this season, Kieran Trippier has been outstanding for Eddie Howe’s men, contributing 10 clean sheets in 18 Premier League appearances. One goal and four assists mean he’s also very dangerous down the other end of the pitch, with his set-piece delivery a major threat for The Magpies.
READ MORE:
- Ranking Every Premier League Manager From The 2022/23 Season So Far
- Betfred's Premier League Betting*
Aleksandar Mitrovic - Fulham (7.45 rating)
“He’ll never carry that form into the Premier League.”
Fulham striker Aleksandar Mitrovic plundered a record 43 goals in the Championship last season and, to be honest, no-one thought he’d be this lethal on his return to the top tier.
His 11 goals so far put him behind only robot Erling Haaland, Harry Kane and a red-hot Ivan Toney in the league’s scoring charts. Seventh placed Fulham are the Premier League’s biggest overachievers so far this term, and it’s all thanks to the Serb.
Bruno Guimaraes - Newcastle United (7.36 rating)
The best Bruno in the Premier League right now? He could well be. The Brazilian has been a key cog in Newcastle’s transformation under Eddie Howe and the St James’ Park faithful absolutely adore him.
He’s contributed to six goals in 15 games this season, successfully recovered the ball on 122 occasions and won 108 midfield duels.
Ivan Toney - Brentford (7.35 rating)
Left out of England’s World Cup squad, and in a spot of bother over gambling accusations, Ivan Toney hasn’t let disappointment get in the way of his form in front of goal.
As mentioned above, only Haaland and Kane have scored more than Brentford’s main man this season. His 12 Premier League goals and three assists have been vital in The Bees’ fight for a top half finish.
Joelinton - Newcastle United (7.29 rating)
One of the biggest turnarounds in Premier League history? Joelinton was almost a laughing stock at Newcastle before he was pushed into a deeper midfield role.
Since then, the Brazilian has flourished - and Eddie Howe is a huge fan.
“He’s been so willing for the team, his work rate and the amount of ground that he covers is incredible really. I can’t praise him enough, since I’ve come in, a real team player, but with such ability as well, I think he can only get better from this point.”
Miguel Almiron - Newcastle United (7.16 rating)
Another man who is enjoying an incredible renaissance under Eddie Howe in the North East.
Cruelly ribbed by Jack Grealish at the end of last season, ‘Miggy’ has been one of the standout players in the Premier League, scoring nine goals and providing one assist in 18 games. If Newcastle do maintain or improve their league position and end up playing on the continent next season, Almiron will have a new stage to shine on.
Fabian Schar - Newcastle United (7.15 rating)
And back to that lean Newcastle defence. In all honesty, Nick Pope, Sven Botman and Dan Burn all deserve to join Schar and Trippier in this list, but it’s the Swiss man who edges it.
The Magpies haven’t lost with him in defence so far this season. Eight clean sheets in 17 games and one goal point to a fantastic first half of the season.
Bernd Leno - Fulham (7.10 rating)
The former Arsenal man is the highest rated keeper in the Premier League this season.
He’s made 67 saves in 16 games, kept four clean sheets and made zero errors leading to a goal. While Mitrovic and Andreas Pereira make headlines up the other end of the pitch, Leno has quietly been impressing at the back.
Solly March - Brighton (7.09 rating)
After scoring in Brighton’s 4-1 thumping of Everton last night, Solly March enters the list.
He has been involved in three goals in his last three league games for a side who are just one win off the European spots, two points above Chelsea and only one behind Jurgen Klopp’s struggling Liverpool.
Pascal Struijk - Leeds United (7.07 rating)
Bit of a strange one you think?
Leeds defender Struijk has only kept three clean sheets in 15 games this season, but it’s his impressive underlying stats which mean he grabs a spot on this list.
Tackles: 48
Tackle success: 69%
Interceptions: 24
Clearances: 59
Goal-line clearances: 1
Goal contributions: 3
*18+ | BeGambleAware | Odds Subject To Change
