Premier League 2018/19: 5 players with the most goal contributions

As the Premier League drew the curtains on arguably its greatest ever season, it's time we pull out the knives and do a bit of dissection.

There have been a preposterous return of goals, some of which were scored in an equally preposterous manner. In fact, the 1,072 goals scored this season is the highest in over a decade. Then there were players who lit up the campaign with their prolific assistance, putting things on the plate for others to make a meal of.

However, there have also been a handful of players who were simply adept at both, scoring as well as assisting. Their numbers may not hold a candle to the likes of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo but were nevertheless impressive enough to penetrate into any post-season conversation.

Here are the top five players with the most goal contribution for the 2018/19 season in the Premier League:

#5 Raheem Sterling - 27 (17 goals and 10 assists)

Man City's golden boy was also the best young player according to the PFA

Manchester City successfully fended off challenge from Liverpool to become the first team since Manchester United in 2009 to retain the Premier League title. Once again, it was down to a tremendous collective effort with several players in the squad yet again hitting the throttle. And Raheem Sterling was among those names too.

With 17 goals and 10 assists under his belt, the twinkle-toed winger pillaged the 'Best Young Player of the Year' prize from his own team-mate Leroy Sane, at 24-years of age.

In another stellar season, Sterling got his second hat-trick in the league and the first time since 2015, against Watford and also did it in the quickest time this season by any other player with a treble, netting thrice in only 13 minutes.

He too was heavily involved in the Chelsea demolition job by scoring twice and assisting once, though his most productive outing of the season came in a similarly emphatic victory over Southampton, where he scored and assisted twice each in a 6-1 thumping.

#4 Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang - 27 (22 goals and 5 assists)

Auba's terrific run gives the Gunners hope ahead of the Europa League final

Unai Emery's first full season in the Premier League may have been a mixed bag, but that of Aubameyang was a resounding success.

The Gabonese continued from where he left last year to plunder 22 goals and five assists across 36 appearances, whilst also winning the Golden Boot, his first in the league and the second of his career, albeit sharing the same with Salah and Mane.

It took him four games to get going in 2018/19, but once he set off, there was no stopping him. He scored seven in the next seven, and also racked-up assists regularly. He scored twice against Burnley on the final day, just days after bagging his first hattrick for the Gunners against Valencia in the Europa League.

With the Baku showpiece still to come, looks like he isn't done yet.

#3 Sergio Aguero - 29 (21 goals and 8 assists)

Aguero just doing what he does best...SCORE!

Manchester City's battering ram missed out on a second Premier League Golden Boot of his career by a whisker, but his influence in the title triumph was second to none.

Aguero posted near identical figures from the previous season - scoring 21 times again, but assisting just one more than last time with seven. However, he did it in 33 appearances this time, compared to only 25 in 2017/18. But that may not tell the whole story.

He struck apiece against Liverpool and Manchester United, besides the winners against Burnley and West Ham. But the highlights of his precocious run were the consecutive hat-tricks against Arsenal and Chelsea, the latter of which eventually resulted in a 6-0 battering of the Blues.

In the process, he also climbed up the Premier League scoring rung from 12th at the start of the season to sixth currently, surpassing the likes of Michael Owen, Robin van Persie and Jermain Defoe to bring his overall tally in the league to 163.

Legendary stuff.

#2 Mohamed Salah - 30 (22 goals and 8 assists)

The Liverpool maestro fell some way off replicating his barnstorming run of last year but nevertheless had another highly productive season in front of goal by netting 22 times and assisting another eight goals as the Reds came through their best ever Premier League season.

Salah effectively rubbished all claims of "one-season wonder" with another prolific run and also retained the Golden Boot, though he had to share it this time. He was heavily involved in the big games, whilst also letting his counterparts Mane and Firmino have their moment under the sun too.

Some of his highlights include the winners against Brighton in both legs, the hattrick against Bournemouth and the double against Arsenal in a 5-1 shellacking. His best run lasted from matchday 32 to 37, during which he was directly involved in at least a goal a game.

#1 Eden Hazard - 31 goals (16 goals and 15 assists)

Chelsea's sole shining light, Hazard was better than he's ever been

Chelsea's rocky season under Maurizio Sarri culminated with a respectable third place finish. But it could've been far worse had it not been for the Belgian talisman's crucial interventions.

With 16 goals and 15 assists, Hazard finished the campaign with a staggering goal involvement of 31, which is incredibly 49% of the total goals the Blues accrued in the Premier League this season.

He dragged this rag-tag team through every thick and thin with his prolific run and also averaged a goal or assist every 93 minutes. Yet, very curiously, he missed a place in the Team of the Year.

Hazard's importance to this Chelsea side cannot be more overstated. And his impending departure would leave a massive void in the side which would be too difficult to cement.