Each Premier League club’s most valuable player

Interesting results emerge when calculating a points-per-game tallies

There are many statistical measures that can be used to judge a footballer’s individual quality. Metrics such as goals, assists, chances created, tackles and interceptions all help to paint a picture of a player, depending on their position.

It is more tricky to measure a player’s importance to the collective success of their team. Just because a player has a good record in front of goal, for example, does not mean they actually make the team perform any better as a whole.

One method of assessing an individual’s significance is through his points-per-game tally. In other words, how many points does the team win when he plays, and how does that compare to other members of the squad? It is far from perfect but it is an illustrative exercise, and in the Premier League it throws up some eye-opening results.

Here, we present each Premier League team’s most important player, based on those points-per-game metrics, since the start of last season (for the three promoted clubs − Burnley, Sheffield United and Luton Town − it only applies to this campaign). To ensure the fairest results, we have imposed a minimum appearance total of 35 games in that time.

Arsenal − William Saliba (2.36 points per game)

The titan at the heart of Arsenal’ s defence. S ali ba is the rock upon which Mikel Art eta’ s title challenge has been built. Last season, it was his injury that led to Arsenal’s collapse. If he can stay fit this time around, Arsenal will feel confident in their ability to go all the way.

Key stat: Saliba has played every minute of this league campaign so far, and has the highest points-per-game of any Arsenal player in Premier League history.

Liverpool − Diogo Jota (2.15 pts)

Liverpool have lost only five of the 41 league matches Jota (below) has played since the start of last season. He may not score as frequently as Mohamed Salah, but when Jota plays Liverpool usually win. No player in Jurgen Klopp’s squad has a higher win percentage than Jota’s 63 pc.

Key stat: Prior to his injury at Brentford in February, Jota was averaging one goal every two games for Liverpool this season. In 28 appearances, he scored 14.

Manchester City − Jack Grealish (2.55 pts)

Rodri may be on an unbeaten run that stretches over the course of a full calendar year, but over the past two seasons it is actually Grealish who has the best points-per-game record of any player in Pep Guardiola’s squad. Rodri’s loss per cent age(6.6pc) is margin ally superior to Grealish’s 7.1pc, but it is Grealish who boasts a higher win percentage (81pc, compared to Rodri’s 75pc).

Key stat: City have not lost a Premier League match that Grealish has started since February 2023.

Aston Villa − Alex Moreno (1.83pts)

One of Unai Emery’s regular selection headaches is at left-back, where Lucas Digne and Alex Moreno are competing for the same spot. On a points-per-game basis, it is Moreno who has had the edge since his £13m move from Real Betis in January 2023. Digne doesn’t feature in the top 11 players at Villa on a points-pergame basis since the start of last season.

Key stat: Among Premier League defenders, only Brighton’ s Per vis Es tupi nan averages more touches per game in the opposition’s penalty area than Moreno.

Tottenham − Cristian Romero (1.84 pts)

It requires considerable mental and technical quality to win the World Cup and, in Romero, Spurs have a defender who has the potential to become one of the game’s leading centre-halves. It helps that his disciplinary record is improving, too: he has now gone 11 matches without a yellow card.

Keystat: Spurs have lost four of the seven matches (57 pc) Romero has not started this season. In contrast, they have lost just 21pc of the games he has started.

Manchester United − Casemiro (2 pts)

Casemiro may not be the player he was, and this season may not be going as well as his first in the Premier League, but he remains a crucial player for Erik ten Hag. It is worth noting though that the Brazilian would not be at the top of this table if our criteria was slightly different. Harry Maguire has not quite hit the 35 game mark( he has played 32 games since the start of last season) but the England defender’s 2.19 points-per-game is the highest of any player at United. Key stat: Since the start of last season, Casemiro has averaged the third most blocks per game of

any regular Premier League midfielder.

West Ham − Lucas Paqueta (1.44 pts)

No surprises here. Paqueta is widely regarded as West Ham’s best player, following the departure of Declan Rice to Arsenal last summer, and they have struggled when he has been missing this season. From mid-January to mid-February, when the Brazilian was injured, West Ham won zero games out of six. Key stat: This season, Pa que ta has created

1.18 chances per 90 minutes for West Ham. Only James Ward-Prowse (who takes the set-pieces) has created more.

Brighton − Pervis Estupinan (1.65 pts)

Last season, Estupinan was one of the best full-backs in the league, playing a key role as Brighton qualified for European competition for the first time. This campaign has been more challenging but it speaks volumes of the 26-year-old’s importance that he remains their best player in terms of points-per-game.

Key stat: Only Pascal Gross has created more chances per game for Brighton this season than Estupinan.

Wolves − Toti (1.55 pts)

In a Wolves team full of exciting talents, Toti is among the least-heralded players. He is enjoying his best season yet under Gary O’Neil’s management, though, and recently signed a new five-and-a-halfyear contract at Molineux. Key stat: To ti has three assists this season.

Only one other Wolves defender (Matt Doherty in 2018/’19) has ever registered more in a single campaign.

Newcastle − Nick Pope (1.88 pts)

At the time of Nick Pope’s shoulder injury, in early December, Newcastle were within reach of the top four. Now they are 10th, and 16 points away from fourth-placed Aston Villa. The absence of Pope is one of the most obvious reasons for this dip.

Key stat: Before his injury, Pope had played every minute of Newcastle’s Premier League and Champions League matches this season.

Chelsea − Conor Gallagher (1.34 pts)

Chelsea have spent more than £1bn on new players since the Boehly-Clearlake takeover but it is Gallagher, a homegrown talent, who is statistically their most important figure. The possibility of him being sold this summer, with Spurs interested, will concern many Chelsea fans.

Key stat: Only Axel Disasi, the French defender, has played more league minutes for Chelsea than Gallagher this season.

Fulham − Willian (1.53 pts)

Not one observer of Willian during his dreadful year at Arsenal would have expected him to remain at the highest

level for much longer. To be blunt, he looked finished as a Premier League force. At the age of 35, though, he is still going strong. The Brazilian is a crucial part of Marco Silva’s plans at Craven Cottage.

Key stat: At Arsenal in the 2020/’21 season, Willian scored just one goal in 25 league appearances. For Fulham, he has nine goals in 52 league appearances.

Bournemouth − Antoine Semenyo (1.43 pts)

Dominic Solanke may score most of the goals and generate the most headlines, but he is not the only Bournemouth attacker who makes the difference for Andoni Iraola’s side. With seven goals this season, Semenyo is showing that he has adjusted to the top flight.

Key stat: Semenyo is statistically one of the Premier League’s deadliest finishers. He has scored seven league goals this

season from an expected goals of just 3.5.

Crystal Palace − Cheick Doucoure (1.24 pts)

Regular observers of Palace will know that Doucoure, a £21m signing from Lens in 2022, is a class above the other midfielders in the first-team squad. He is widely expected to move on to a bigger club at one point. Sadly, Doucoure has not played since suffering a serious Achilles injury in November.

Key stat: Last season, Doucoure made more tackles and interceptions than any other Palace player.

Brentford − Josh Dasilva (1.51 pts)

Dasilva has struggled to maintain his fitness in recent seasons. His bad luck continued in February, when he suffered a ligament injury in his knee. Dasilva’s points-per-game, over 39 league appearances, show that Brentford’s results are simply better when he is involved.

Key stat: Since the start of last season, Dasilva has scored four goals from just six shots on target in the league.

Ever ton− Ab dou lay eDoucou re (1.26 p ts)

Doucoure scored the crucial goal that ensured Everton’s league survival last season and his importance to the club cannot be questioned.

Key stat: With six goals this season, Doucoure is the club’s top scorer in all competitions.

Luton Town − Alfie Doughty (0.79 pts)

Doughty has been a near-constant for Luton this season and his crossing ability has been one of their most dangerous threats. Doughty has started all but four league matches this term, and Luton have lost each of the four games in which he did not start, conceding 11 goals and scoring only twice.

Key stat: Doughty is Luton’s leading creative force with seven assists this season.

Nottingham Forest − Ryan Yates (0.98 pts)

It is a measure of the enormous change at Forest that Yates is at the top of this list, as there are actually four players with a better points-per-game return over the past two seasons − but they have all left the club. Serge Aurier, Joe Worrall, Orel Mangala and Brennan Johnson have a better record than Yates.

Key stat: Yates has been a Forest player for almost 20 years, having joined the club’s academy in 2005.

Burnley − Josh Brownhill (0.63 pts)

Burn ley have played seven league matches without Brown hill in their starting line-up this season, and have lost six of those. In all competitions this season, they have lost 70pc of their games without Brownhill starting, compared to 65pc with him.

Keystat: Brownhill has created 29 chances for Burnley this season. Only Johann BergGudmundss on (31) has created more.

S he ffi el dUtd− Gustavo Ham er (0.54 p ts)

In a disastrous season, no Sheffield United player has truly excelled. Of them all, though, it is perhaps Hamer whose reputation remains the most intact. No Sheffield United player has been involved in more goals than the Brazilian, who has four goals and four assists so far this season. Key stat: With 1.71 chances created per match, Hamer has been more than twice as creative as any other Blades player. (© Telegraph Media Group Ltd, 2024)