Premier League POWER RANKINGS: Who is our new No 1 with a week to go?
Christian Eriksen and Jamie Vardy have hit late-season form, while Bruno Guimaraes ran the show for Newcastle against Arsenal… but who is the new No 1 in this week’s POWER RANKINGS ahead of the final day of the season?
- Manchester City’s draw at West Ham could see title race go to the final day
- Top four race all but done after Arsenal’s defeats at Spurs and Newcastle
- Battle to avoid drop yet to be decided but two candidates are in midweek action
- With that in mind, meet your latest top 10 of Sportsmail‘s Power Rankings
Just one matchday of the Premier League season remains and there is still plenty to play for after another dramatic weekend of action.
Manchester City’s 2-2 draw against West Ham means the title race will go down to the final day of the season, as long as Liverpool claim victory at Southampton on Tuesday.
The top four race took a dramatic twist with Arsenal’s back-to-back defeats against Tottenham and Newcastle seeing their north London rivals take their spot in the Champions League spots.
The relegation battle may go down to the final day too, but Everton could seal safety and Burnley could pile all the pressure on Leeds if they win their respective game in hand on Thursday night.
With that in mind, meet your latest top 10 of our Premier League Power Rankings.
Man City’s 2-2 draw against West Ham means the title race could go down to the final day
LAST WEEK’S TOP 10
10. Moises Caicedo (Brighton)
9. Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool)
8. Rodri (Manchester City)
7. Raheem Sterling (Manchester City)
6. Kevin de Bruyne (Manchester City)
5. Said Benrahma (West Ham)
4. Luis Diaz (Liverpool)
3. Son Heung-min (Tottenham)
2. Eddie Nketiah (Arsenal)
1. Jordan Pickford (Everton)
It’s been a season largely to forget for Romelu Lukaku following his return to Chelsea, but the last week has provided some optimism ahead of next season.
He followed up his two goals against Wolves with the third in the 3-0 win at Leeds in midweek and in all probability should have had more.
An FA Cup final at the weekend meant he did not get the chance to score for a third top-flight game running, but perhaps in the last few games he has shown he can be part of a Thomas Tuchel side.
Romelu Lukaku followed up his two goals against Wolves with the third in the win at Leeds
9. Christian Eriksen (new entry)
Another new entry and arguably Brentford’s most important player in the second half of this season, Christian Eriksen has been a breath of fresh air for Thomas Frank in helping them pull away from the relegation scrap.
True, he was given the freedom of Goodison Park in the 3-2 win at Everton to dictate play and spray the ball around.
But the way he found space and delivered a number of testing deliveries in the box was just what Tottenham fans were used to during his days in north London.
A goal and four assists in 10 Premier League games is a commendable return less than a year after suffering a cardiac arrest, and he now wants Champions League football again, meaning a return to Spurs could be on the cards.
Christian Eriksen was given the freedom of Goodison to dictate play and spray the ball around
8. Jarrod Bowen (new entry)
West Ham’s biggest threat on the counter attack against Manchester City and well worthy of his two goals.
He bent his run brilliantly to stay onside for the first and then kept his cool when in the clear to beat Ederson again. A tight angle prevented him from scoring what would have been a deserved hat-trick.
He has nevertheless become the first Hammer since Paolo Di Canio to reach double digits in both goals and assists in a Premier League season.
Sportsmail revealed earlier this week West Ham are now looking to tie him down to a new deal and double his wages, and with an England call-up also in the offing he could yet reach a new level in the next 12 months.
Jarrod Bowen was West Ham’s biggest threat against Man City and well worthy of his two goals
7. Luis Diaz (down three)
No involvement in Premier League matters this week, but the Colombian was named Man of the Match in Liverpool’s FA Cup final win.
It continued what has been a fine start to life in English football for the former Porto man, with four goals and three assists in 12 top-flight games.
The Reds are not completely out of the reckoning for the title but you feel they will need Diaz for the last couple of games to ensure they push Manchester City as hard as they can.
Luis Diaz was in FA Cup final action at the weekend but has had a fine few months in England
6. Jamie Vardy (new entry)
The Leicester man has given his side a boost late on in what has been a disappointing campaign.
The 35-year-old followed up a midweek brace against Norwich with another two in the 5-1 hammering of Watford.
It was classic Vardy at Vicarage Road, making life uncomfortable for the goalkeeper and running in behind the defence before adding devastating finishes to match.
Time is not on his side but with knee injuries hopefully over and Patson Daka having had a season to adapt, Brendan Rodgers will hope the pair can help lead Leicester up the table next term.
Jamie Vardy followed up a midweek brace against Norwich with another two at Watford
5. Raheem Sterling (up two)
Did not come off the bench against West Ham but is showing some good form late on in this campaign.
After what seemed like a timid display at Wolves he managed to be the only City scorer on the night not named Kevin De Bruyne.
It is something that perhaps has characterised his England career to a certain extent but this is why Sterling remains such a threat on the left for City, showing what Jack Grealish is currently missing from his game.
Talks will be held about his future in the summer and a departure is not out of the question, but City will need goals from sources other than Erling Haaland next season. Sterling provides a steady stream of those after 13 this term.
Raheem Sterling did not have his best game at Wolves but managed to get on the scoresheet
4. Bruno Guimaraes (new entry)
Showed Arsenal exactly what they had missed out on in a domineering display against them in Monday’s 2-0 win.
The Brazilian managed 73 touches in a midfield performance that simply was too good for Granit Xhaka and Mohamed Elneny and he rounded it off with a well-taken goal.
He exhibits everything that has changed at the club since the takeover and the leadership qualities are there for everybody to see.
Add a few more like the £33million January signing, and Eddie Howe will have a side seriously challenging in and around the European positions next season.
Bruno Guimaraes showed Arsenal exactly what they had missed out on in a brilliant display
3. Rodri (up five)
A solid contender for Manchester City’s player of the season award, having added goals to his defensive steeliness in recent weeks.
Could have done better for Wolves’ goal in midweek and perhaps pushed a little too high up the field at times in east London to expose City’s shaky centre-backs.
But after making a nuisance of himself in the box he managed to grab an assist for Jack Grealish’s strike and there were still some crucial tackles to stop the Hammers from scoring more on the break.
He claimed last week it will be ‘difficult’ for teams to reach City’s level over the next few seasons, and he is a big part of the reason why.
Rodri is a solid contender for Manchester City’s player of the season award after a fine season
2. Kevin De Bruyne (up four)
Cannot really be ignored following his four-goal haul at Wolves during the week, even though he failed to follow it up with another fine display at West Ham.
He scored three of his four goals at Molineux on his ‘weaker’ side, and continues to find new levels to his game despite his consistency every season.
He sent in a few nice deliveries at the London Stadium without the subsequent reward but there is no doubt the Belgian deserves to be in a side winning the title yet again.
A Player of the Year Award would be the perfect way to round off the season for the Belgian.
Kevin De Bruyne’s four-goal haul at Wolves was followed by a frustrating display at West Ham
1. Son Heung-min (up two)
A street-smart forward who soaked up the early fouls from Rob Holding to then contribute to his sending off in the north London derby.
Fortunate to get away with an elbow early on but showed his class once more, winning the dubious penalty before getting on the scoresheet himself.
Could well have taken the lead in the race for the Golden Boot had Nick Pope not brilliantly denied him twice in Sunday’s win over Burnley.
But with the top four pretty much secure and Norwich away on the final day, the South Korean could well add an individual award to cap off a fine season.
Son Heung-min is well in the race to be crowned the winner of this season’s Golden Boot
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