Premier League POWER RANKINGS: Who is our new surprise No 1?
Luis Diaz and Son Heung-min continue to deliver, while Moises Caicedo has emerged as a key figure in Brighton’s resurgence… but who’s the surprise No 1 in this week’s POWER RANKINGS?
- Cristiano Ronaldo was top of our rankings last week, but has slipped off the list
- Manchester City moved three points clear in the title race with Newcastle win
- Everton continued their great escape with a shock 2-1 victory over Leicester City
- Arsenal increased gap to Spurs to four points ahead of north London derby
Manchester City pulled further clear at the top of the Premier League to dent Liverpool’s title hopes as Everton continued their good form to pull themselves out of the relegation zone in an action-packed weekend.
Pep Guardiola’s side are now three points clear at the top of the table after sealing a huge 5-0 win over Newcastle United while Liverpool were held to a 1-1 draw by Tottenham Hotspur.
Arsenal grabbed more of a hold on fourth place with a 2-1 win over Leeds, who have slipped into the relegation zone, to move four points ahead of rivals Spurs.
Everton pulled off a 2-1 win over Leicester City to move up to 16th as Watford were officially relegated.
With that in mind, meet your latest Top 10 of our Power Rankings.
Manchester City pulled further clear at the top of the league with a 5-0 win over Newcastle
Everton continued their great escape by moving up to 16th with a 2-1 win over Leicester City
LAST WEEK’S TOP 10
10. Rodri (Manchester City)
9. Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City)
8. Bruno Guimaraes (Newcastle)
7. Jordan Pickford (Everton)
6. Luis Diaz (Liverpool)
5. Bukayo Saka (Arsenal)
4. Son Heung-Min (Tottenham)
3. Gabriel Jesus (Manchester City)
2. Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool)
1. Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United)
10. Moises Caicedo (new entry)
The Brighton & Hove Albion midfielder enters the list as he put in a superb performance in their 4-0 victory over Manchester United.
The 20-year-old only joined the Seagulls on transfer deadline day and appears to be a breath of fresh air.
The Ecuador international has arguably been a key reason for Graham Potter’s side magnificent form of late.
Brighton midfielder Moises Caicedo is a new entry after scoring his first Premier League goal
Brighton have won four of their last six fixtures in the Premier League to move into the top half of the league table, that includes wins over Arsenal, Tottenham and Manchester United.
Caicedo was rewarded for his performances with his first-ever Premier League goal in their huge win on Saturday, hitting a pinpoint effort into the bottom corner for the hosts’ opener.
Reports suggest he was considered an an option by Man United last year before talks broke down, and at the weekend he came back to bite them in the most painful way.
9. Virgil van Dijk (down seven)
The defender was ranked second last week, but has dropped seven places after watching Liverpool’s title chances shrink with a 1-1 draw against Tottenham on Saturday evening.
The Dutchman has been back to his dominant best in the second-half of this season, with Liverpool keeping 20 clean sheets – hence the reason he remains on the list.
The centre-back also put in yet another good performance against Spurs, clipping the bar with a header before his side conceded a goal in the contest which ultimately contributed to them slipping three points behind City in the title race.
Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk has tumbled down the rankings after 1-1 draw with Spurs
8. Rodri (up two)
The defensive midfielder was a new entry last week and despite all of City’s attacking threats, he has climbed even further up the list, after yet another strong display.
The Spanish midfielder – perhaps not known for his attacking ability – got on the scoresheet in City’s 5-0 victory over Newcastle, heading home from a corner to make it six goals for the season and shatter any hopes of a comeback for the visitors.
Three of those goals have come in the last three Premier League fixtures to prove his worth going forward in this team. But it is still his defensive exploits that keep City ticking while protecting their back four.
Manchester City star Rodri has scored three goals in his last three Premier League fixtures
7. Raheem Sterling (new entry)
The England international has been in and out of the team with Pep Guardiola rotating his squad to deal with the fixtures and utilise his attacking options.
Sterling, however, bagged two goals in their latest win after failing to score since mid-February, heading home an inch-perfect headed pass from Joao Cancelo before netting the final goal after unselfish work from Jack Grealish.
His goal tally is now up to 16 for the season and he has seven assists to his name as well – making him City’s second top goalscorer this season.
Since his return to the starting line-up in the Premier League, City have ran riot with a 5-1 win over Watford, a 4-0 win at Leeds and a 5-0 victory over Newcastle United to put them in control of the title race.
Talk of Arsenal monitoring his situation with his deal at the Etihad up next year is swirling but has demonstrated once again this season how he can more than play his role in a City attack next term.
Raheem Sterling is a new entry after scoring a brace in Man City’s 5-0 win over Newcastle
6. Kevin de Bruyne (up three)
Manchester City dominate the top 10 with De Bruyne being the third entry on the list as he continues to be the driving force and creative spark for Pep Guardiola’s side.
The Belgian playmaker was rested last week against Leeds United, but returned to the starting line-up for their 5-0 win over Newcastle, and once again showed his class.
Powered forward on the half-turn and played some nice passes out, including a stunning cross into Gabriel Jesus on the break which the Brazilian could not quite control. It was also a superb corner that picked out Rodri for City’s third.
De Bruyne might not have scored, but he still has 15 goals on the season and 13 assists.
City are currently three points ahead of Liverpool in the title race, heading into the final three fixtures, and you would expect De Bruyne to be play a key role if they are successful in winning another domestic crown.
Kevin de Bruyne has climbed back up the rankings as he returned to City’s starting line-up
5. Said Benrahma (new entry)
West Ham winger Said Benrahma is a new entry to the list after his dazzling display where he scored twice in the Hammers 4-0 thrashing of already relegated Norwich City.
The Algerian has impressed with his dribbling ability and moves since arriving in east London, but has perhaps struggled to find the end product, and that meant he was in and out of the team last season.
He seems to have nailed down his place over the second half of the campaign and is even now chipping in with goals.
Benrahma has 11 goals in all competitions and six assists and with West Ham still in the hunt for Europe he could be heavily relied upon along with the likes of Jarrod Bowen and Michail Antonio.
Said Benrahma makes the top five after his two goals, as West Ham thrashed Norwich
4. Luis Diaz (up two)
Luis Diaz continues to impress since his arrival at Liverpool and he is delivering on a regular basis already. He has well and truly pushed himself right up the pecking order in attack.
The 25-year-old Colombian is a constant source of danger every time he plays for Jurgen Klopp’s side and like we’ve previously stated could be a good shout for signing of the season – despite only joining in January.
The £37.5m January signing is seeing game time ahead of Diogo Jota and Roberto Firmino right now for the big games, including the 1-1 draw against Tottenham on Saturday.
The result may have been a dent in their title hopes, but it could have been a lot worse if it wasn’t for Diaz, who struck a deflected equaliser in the 74th minute at Anfield.
Luis Diaz continues to shine as he rescued a point for Liverpool against Tottenham at Anfield
3. Son Heung-min (up one)
Son Heung-min spent a week outside of the top 10, but worked his way back in last week, and this time has climbed into the top three as he continues to push himself into a position to potentially win the Golden Boot.
The 29-year-old is now just two goals behind Mohamed Salah in the race to win that award with 20 for the season after scoring in Tottenham’s 1-1 draw with title chasing Liverpool, being in the right place at the right time to finish off yet another counter.
What makes his goal tally even more impressive is that he has done it without taking a single penalty unlike most of the players competing for that honour.
If Spurs are going to make it into the top four above fierce rivals Arsenal, you’d expect Son and Harry Kane to be the main reasons why.
The 29-year-old is now just two goals behind Mohamed Salah in the Golden Boot race
2. Eddie Nketiah (new entry)
Eddie Nketiah, despite having an uncertain future, has put speculation aside and transformed into the striker Arsenal have perhaps needed all season.
The 22-year-old has been influential as the Gunners have gone on a four-game winning streak and he has notched four goals in that period to take his tally up to nine for the season.
Two of those came in the first-half of their 2-1 win over former club Leeds United on Sunday – in which he showed persistence to close down Illan Meslier and excellent finish to suit – and two against Chelsea last month.
He has previously struggled for game time, but now is the first name on the team sheet ahead of Alexandre Lacazette due to his current form as well as the team’s good fortunes.
Eddie Nketiah has notched four goals in four games as Arsenal are unbeaten in that period
1. Jordan Pickford (up six)
None other than Jordan Pickford claims the top spot this week. It might come as a surprise to some, but his last two performances are the reason Everton sit outside the relegation zone.
England’s No 1 goalkeeper moves from seventh to the top spot in just a week after being a new entry as he was the Toffees hero as they beat Leicester City 2-1.
Having produced a stunning man of the match performance last weekend when they beat Chelsea 1-0 – including a flying stop to deny Cesar Azpilicueta – he was at it once again pulling off crucial saves to help Frank Lampard’s move out of the bottom three.
Jordan Pickford takes top spot as his heroics have helped Everton out of the relegation zone
At 2-1, Leicester had multiple chances, but he pulled off some quality saves to ensure no more goals and earn the three points. Pickford acrobatically saved Nampalys Mendy’s long-range effort, spectacularly tipping it around the post.
Then the Three Lions ‘keeper kept Harvey Barnes out from inside the six-yard box, when Daka’s header found the winger, as well as saving a driven effort from further out from the former.
Everton are not out of the woods yet in terms of sealing their top-flight status for 2022-23, but if they manage to do so they will have plenty to thank Pickford for, something Gareth Southgate will no doubt be keeping his eye on.
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