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This Premier League season has been unlike any other in ways more than one. First, it began much later than usual, and there was a very short break between this season and the preceding one, thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic. Secondly, it has added to the ways a player could be affected apart from the usual list of injuries: a COVID-19 infection.
All of that has led to the 2020-21 Premier League becoming even more open than before, with big teams proving more fallible and newer stars emerging.
Five underrated footballers in the Premier League right now
With the focus still inexorably fixed on the Manchester Citys and Liverpools and their players, sometimes great performers from other teams tend to go under the radar.
In this article, we will take a look at five underrated players who have done well in the early days of the 2020-21 Premier League season so far.
#5 Richarlison
Everton had made the early running in the Premier League and in no small reason due to their fabulous Brazilian attacker Richarlison.
He has been in the news for all the wrong reasons in recent times, though, after getting sent off for a horror tackle on Thiago Alcantara in the Merseyside derby. But he is, by many accounts, Everton's best footballer right now. Consider the fact that Carlo Ancelotti's men have lost their last two fixtures with Richarlison missing.
In fact, such is Everton's dependence on the Brazil international that they have never won without him in their squad since he joined the club in 2018. With one goal and two assists in five appearances this season, Richarlison has already hit the ground running this year.
#4 Douglas Luiz
Our second Brazilian in this list, Douglas Luiz, is different from Richarlison in terms of his role on the pitch. But the midfield maestro is imbued with the same characteristic Brazilian flair.
He has run the show for Aston Villa at the center of the park since the last Premier League season, when they escaped relegation thanks in some measure to his efficiency in midfield.
The former Manchester City player has begun this season on a high as well, and, Villa are in the top half of the table this season but have dropped two games in a row after a blistering start.
#3 Michail Antonio
It is fair to say that West Ham United are just not the same team without Michail Antonio leading their line. Yet, the 30-year-old rarely makes the headlines, due partly because of him playing for a club that are middling at best and were happy to survive in the top division last time around.
It was clear that the Hammers missed his services during their loss to Premier League champions Liverpool on Saturday. Antonio adds that extra special something that the club seeks.
He has already scored thrice in the Premier League this season and has been involved in 23% of all the goals his club has scored. In 160 matches, he has netted 41 times for the London club, which is truly underrated.
#2 Danny Ings
There is no doubting the fact that Danny Ings is one of the best marksmen in the Premier League right now. He set the Premier League on fire last season, netting 25 goals for the Saints. He has just picked up from where he left off last time, having already scored five goals and provided two assists in seven games.
Ings had a horrific, injury-riddled time at Liverpool, which makes his resurrection at Southampton truly the stuff of fairytales, something that has coincided with his return to the England team as well.
However, he picked up an injury against Aston Villa on Sunday that could keep his team and fans worried. The former Burnley star will be fervently hoping that it isn't as serious as some of his previous injuries.
#1 Rui Patricio
We round off the list with the Wolverhampton Wanderers goalkeeper Rui Patricio. In the world of Allison Becker and David de Gea, just to name two elite keepers, Patricio is rarely acknowledged for being the great goalkeeper he is.
The Portugal number one has been an instrumental part of the rise of both his national team and the Wolves but Kepa Arrizabalaga's failings are talked about more than Patricio's silent dexterity.
Even in this season's Premier League, Rui Patricio has already kept the most clean sheets (4), and his team has conceded just eight goals. Well, as long as it works for his team, he will definitely not mind the lack of publicity, for sure.
Honourable mentions:
1. Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Everton)
The highest scorer in the Premier League this season, he just fails to make the top five because he has been deservedly getting the praise for his exploits in recent times.
2. Patrick Bamford (Leeds United)
The hat-trick man against Aston Villa has made a great start to the season. Bamford is rated highly by both his manager and by the press alike, and, if anything, his stock will only rise as the 2020-21 season progresses.
