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#3 Gabriel Jesus
After Sergio Aguero left last season, the sensible guess was that the baton was passed on to Gabriel Jesus to lead the line for the Premier League side. However, manager Pep Guardiola has done some thinking behind the scenes. Manchester City's No.9 is now being employed on the wings to provide more scoring chances for the team.
City are never short on attacking prowess thanks to the abundance of quality forward players at the club’s disposal. But the players have been forced to show versatility to fit into Guardiola’s system. Luckily for the Brazilian starlet he’s been asked to move back to the position he loves to thrive in.
Jesus was quite exceptional for Brazil back in 2019 as he played on the right-wing in their Copa America winning side. He started out on the right against Norwich and bagged a couple of assists in the Premier League. In a strong showing against Arsenal, Jesus was intelligent with his link-up play, scoring as well as assisting in the game.
This season, the City No.9’s goalscoring stats will get skewed as he’s tasked to set up others rather than scoring for himself. But playing on the wing gives Jesus more freedom to express himself and he is putting a strong case to start ahead of Riyad Mahrez and Raheem Sterling.
#2 Fabinho
If Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and Virgil van Dijk are your teammates, it can be difficult to keep your name among the headlines in the Premier League. Such is the character of Fabinho, who is no sucker for headlines, but knows well that his absence on the team sheet is as significant as any of those three.
There is no midfielder in Jurgen Klopp’s side right now who can keep hold of the ball under pressure better than Fabinho. There’s no one better at stealing the ball either. Fabinho is one of the most complete defensive midfielders and certainly among the best in the Premier League. He brings safety and comfort to Liverpool and makes it look effortless.
Last season, when Liverpool were haunted by injuries to Van Dijk, Joe Gomez and Joel Matip, Fabinho stepped up to fill the void at centre-back. Despite playing out of his natural position, the Brazilian was the saving grace for Klopp’s men in the Premier League, helping them stay in the top four.
Thiago Alcantara hasn’t been able to keep himself fit consistently which often disturbs the flow of the Liverpool midfield. But Fabinho, while playing in his favorite No.6 position, ensures that the midfield keeps ticking.
Klopp likes to rotate between Naby Keita, Curtis Jones and Thiago, among others. But there is no touching Fabinho, who is one of the best midfielders in the Premier League when it comes to recovering balls.
With the Brazilian starting in midfield, Liverpool have won 77 per cent of their games. More importantly, he is yet to make an error in his Liverpool career that directly led to a goal.
#1 Ederson Moraes
There is hardly a more complete goalkeeper in the Premier League right now. Manchester City’s Ederson Moraes is the perfect blueprint for a modern-day goalkeeper. The popular argument is that goalkeepers are supposed to save goals and there are many who are exceptional at their jobs.
But if you were to pick a goalkeeper who can dribble past strikers lunging at the ball, who can score penalties and assist a goal, you wouldn’t say no. That's Ederson in a nutshell.
Ederson has been the pick of goalkeepers in the Premier League and has won two straight Golden Glove awards in the last two seasons. The Brazilian has ice running through his veins and is never off judgment in his 18-yard box. Guardiola can replace anyone in the side, but Ederson is the first name on the starting sheet.
The City goalkeeper has shown impressive vision with his distribution from the back, especially with long balls. He also became the first Manchester City goalkeeper ever to assist a goal in 2018.
Ederson’s neat passing has allowed Guardiola’s team to play from the back quite effectively, a system his apprentice Mikel Arteta wishes to employ at Arsenal. Before last year’s Champions League final against Chelsea, there were reports that claimed Ederson was scoring penalties for fun in training. In a Premier League game against Tottenham Hotspur, Ederson was involved in a conversation with Rodri to take a spot-kick. The latter eventually took the penalty though.
Earlier this month Ederson signed a new contract at City which will keep him at the club until 2026. The Brazilian is a significant part of Guardiola’s football philosophy and enjoys the role at his current club.
