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Football formations and tactics have evolved over time. With the favoured setup transitioning from 4-4-2 to 4-3-3 in the last few decades, wingers have become more crucial. They are now heavily involved in attacking play, which leads to more goals.
Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi have played as wingers for most of their careers. Despite not being deployed in a central position, they have scored loads of goals from the wing. Having goal-scoring wingers allows teams to be more threatening in attack.
Frank Ribery and Arjen Robben were two of the best wingers of the last decade. Mohamed Salah, Neymar Jr, Sadio Mane and Raheem Sterling have been some of the best wingers in the last few years. Neymar’s PSG teammate Kylian Mbappe is versatile, and can easily adapt to a wing role.
On that note, based on ratings (as per WhoScored), here’s a look at the top five wingers this season:
#5 Domenico Berardi - 7.4
Domenico Berardi has been sensational for Sassuolo in the last three seasons, and seems to be improving every campaign. Last season, the Italian winger received plaudits for scoring 17 goals and assisting eight times. The 27-year-old has already racked up ten goals and nine assists this term.
Berardi is the only player among the top five in Serie A this season for both goals and assists. The Sassuolo man played a key role in Italy’s European Championship win last summer. Considering the number of goals and assists he racks up, Berardi is easily one of the most underrated players in Europe.
The Italian winger has scored more than ten goals in a Serie A campaign on five occasions. In each of those campaigns, he also registered at least eight assists. Berardi could earn a big-money move soon if he maintains this level of production.
#4 Leroy Sane - 7.5
Leroy Sane endured an underwhelming first season at Bayern Munich. The German winger scored just ten goals across competitions, and was often overshadowed by Serge Gnabry and Kingsley Coman. Sane seems to be coming into his own this season, though.
The former Manchester City forward has been particularly impressive in the Champions League. He has five goals and as many assists for Bayern in six group games this season. Moreover, he has also scored five Bundesliga goals, just one shy of his 2020-21 tally.
Sane reached the ten goal and ten assist benchmark in a season on two occasions in the Premier League. With five goals and seven assists in the ongoing Bundesliga campaign, he could repeat his Premier League exploits. Sane is the highest-rated out-and-out winger in the German top flight at the moment.
#3 Vinicius Junior - 7.7
Vinicius Junior is having a breakthrough season with Real Madrid. With 12 goals and five assists in La Liga, he has formed a blistering partnership with Karim Benzema. The Brazilian youngster has improved dramatically from the three goals and five assists he conjured last season.
Vinicius had contributed just 27 goals in 117 Real Madrid appearances before the start of the campaign. For a player who cost €45 million, Vinicius was turning out to be a flop. However, he has been breathtaking in La Liga and the Champions League in the last six months.
He is the joint-second highest goalscorer in the 2021-22 La Liga campaign and is high on the assist leaderboard as well. Apart from his 17 goal contributions in the league, the Brazilian forward has also racked up two goals and five assists in the Champions League.
#2 Kylian Mbappe - 7.8
Kylian Mbappe is quickly turning into one of the best players in the world. The Frenchman is primarily a goalscorer, but is quite creative when deployed on the wings. He has scored ten goals and recorded eight assists in Ligue 1 this season.
The former Monaco youngster is among the top five Ligue 1 players for both goals and assists this campaign. After just three and a half seasons with Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), Mbappe (151) is their third-highest goalscorer of all time, and is set to surpass Zlatan Ibrahimovic (156 goals).
Mbappe has four goals and seven assists in the Champions League this season. At just 23, he has already broken many records. Along with the likes of Erling Haaland, Mbappe is set to compete at the highest level for the next decade.
#1 Mohamed Salah - 7.8
Mohamed Salah is having the best season of his career so far. The Liverpool forward has scored 16 goals and recorded nine assists in the Premier League. Only his teammate Trent Alexander-Arnold has more assists than the Egyptian, while no one comes close to his goal tally.
Salah has also been highly prolific in the Champions League. The 29-year-old has seven goals in Europe's top continental competition. Currently away at the AFCON, Salah will want to win the trophy for Egypt to bolster his CV.
Arguably the best player in the world right now, Salah could be central to Liverpool's success this season. Although he may not be able to trump his 32-goal tally in the Premier League from 2017-18, Salah will be among the favourites when the Ballon d'Or voting starts later this year.
