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This week marks the official beginning of the Premier League 2019/2020 season and brings with it a whole lot of excitement.
Last season, Manchester City won the title for the second consecutive time with 98 points while Liverpool ended close second with 97 points. Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur finished third and fourth respectively with the former winning the Europa League.
On the back of their poor show last season, Huddersfield Town, Fulham and Cardiff City were relegated while Sheffield United, Norwich City, and Aston Villa have been promoted to the Premier League this season.
So, without further ado, here are the five midfielders who can make a big impact in the upcoming season and are the best in the Premier League currently:
#5 Fabinho
When Liverpool signed Fabinho for a fee of upwards of €40m last summer, many thought that the Brazilian would take some time to settle into the Premier League as do most players. But after an initial phase of about a month or so where he didn't get much game time, Klopp slowly started integrating him into the team and he was so good in that number 6 role, he almost became undroppable.
The 25-year-old is an out-and-out defensive midfielder who can even play in the backline and his work off the ball is what makes him indispensable to the team. In terms of the stats attacking wise, Fabinho scored just one goal and assisted a further 2, he averaged 57 passes per game and played 72 accurate long balls. As far as his defensive contribution is concerned, Fabinho made had a tackles success rate of 53 percent, making 28 interceptions, 26 clearances, winning 153 duels and recovering possession 120 times.
Fabinho will be a key part of this Liverpool team in the upcoming season as Klopp's team gear up for another Premier League title challenge.
#4 N'Golo Kante
One of the best defensive midfielders in the league, N'Golo Kante played most of his football out of position under Maurizio Sarri last season but he still managed to perform levels ahead of any player in that Chelsea midfield. Now the manager of Juventus, Sarri preferred Jorginho in that holding midfield role over Kante, and the Frenchman occupied the right side of the midfield in a much more attacking role.
Kante managed to score four goals and assisted further four last season and proved to everyone that he can attack well when needed. He attempted a total of 56 passes per game, very low from his previous seasons due to the shift in position. As far as his defensive contributions were concerned, Kante made a total of 74 tackles at a 55 percent success rate. He made 44 interceptions, 26 clearances, won 146 duels and recovered the ball an astonishing 238 times.
With Frank Lampard at the helms of Chelsea, expect Kante to play in his favored position and dominate opposition midfields next season.
#3 Paul Pogba
Manchester United's best midfielder and a player adored by his manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Paul Pogba had a terrific season for the Red Devils even though the club landed outside top 4. His season was full of ups and downs as he wasn't playing that well when Jose Mourinho was United's manager but as soon as Solskjaer took over, he became almost unstoppable from the midfield. He was United's top scorer in all competitions and that tells you something as he is not a striker but a midfielder.
His stats also prove his credentials, the Frenchman scored a total of 13 goals and assisted a further 9. He averaged almost 60 passes per game and played an astonishing 165 accurate long balls. He is also very underrated defensively as Pogba had a tackles success rate of 64 percent, he made 18 interceptions, 36 clearances, won 234 duels and recovered possession 218 times.
Paul Pogba will most likely stay at Manchester United and he is going to be key for Solskjaer and his hopes of bringing United back to the very top.
#2 Christian Eriksen
Tottenham Hotspur' Mr. Consistent, Christian Eriksen had another brilliant season last year as he was integral to everything that the Lillywhites produced attacking wise. The Danish midfielder can play anywhere in the midfield and attack, and he is one of the elite creative midfielders in the world. While everyone looks at his attacking output, one should consider the amount of work Eriksen does off the ball. He is quite similar to what Bernardo Silva offers for Manchester City.
In terms of the attacking stats last season, he scored a total of 8 goals and assisted a further 12. He averaged 53 passes per game and had a crossing accuracy of 28 percent. His defensive contributions were also brilliant with him winning 61 percent of his tackles, making 15 interceptions, won 88 duels and recovered the ball 188 times.
Eriksen has only two years left on his current contract with Spurs and Mauricio Pochettino would be hoping his priced asset extends his stay.
#1 Bernardo Silva
Another Manchester City player who had an astonishing personal year was Bernardo Silva, winning the domestic treble with City and then going on to win the UEFA Nations League. He was so good last season that Guardiola declared him as undroppable and he is also on many peoples favorites to win the Ballon d'Or list. Silva is a very versatile player who can play anywhere from midfield to wings but he was preferred as more of a number 8 from Guardiola, operating from the right of the midfield.
The Portuguese is a dynamic midfielder, capable of both creating and scoring goals. Last season, he scored a total of 7 goals and assisted a further 7. He averaged 50 passes per game and played about 72 accurate long balls. Despite playing in an attacking role, he had a tackles success rate of 75 percent, made 24 interceptions, 25 clearances, won 136 duels and recovered possession 164 times.
Silva will start this season as one of the most important players of this City side as they gear up for the Premier League.
