IT’S easy enough for Dream Team gaffers to check each club’s best performers this season.
But we’ve gone one further here and ranked all twenty teams on how reliant they are on their top asset.
We’ve crunched the numbers to work out the percentages for each of the players in relation to their side’s overall tally; for example, if Player x has 100 points and Team y has 1,000 points then the percentage is 10%.
20. ARSENAL – BUKAYO SAKA (£4.8m) – 9.26%
GETTYArsenal’s resident ‘Starboy’[/caption]
The Gunners’ title charge is the absolute definition of a team effort on the basis of this evidence.
Saka is the third-best midfielder in the game and has undoubtedly been one of the standout individuals of the season but the stats don’t lie, Mikel Arteta’s side have spread around the points more than any other team.
A good omen for their title challenge?
19. WEST HAM – JARROD BOWEN (£3.8m) – 9.6%
The Hammers’ No20 has enjoyed an upturn in form recently, producing 43 points in his last six outings.
Prior to that, Said Benrahma (£3m) was the club’s best performer but his overall tally of 78 points is nothing more than respectable.
18. LEICESTER – JAMES MADDISON (£5.9m) – 10.63%
The Foxes’ playmaker-in-chief is his side’s best player, 12 points ahead of Harvey Barnes (£4.4m), despite the fact he was sidelined for several weeks with a knee injury.
Had Maddison been available more often, Leicester would likely be in the top half of this list as the No10 has clearly been their most successful asset for a while now.
17. NOTTINGHAM FOREST – MORGAN GIBBS-WHITE (£2.3m) – 11.03%
Not much to shout about here as the 23-year-old, as impressive as he’s been, has just 64 points to his name.
Only two other players on this list have fewer points than Gibbs-White.
Dean Henderson (£3m) was actually among the top five goalkeepers at one stage but injury has curtailed his campaign.
Gibbs-White has been a good signing for ForestGETTY
16. CRYSTAL PALACE – MICHAEL OLISE (£2.9m) – 12.11%
The Eagles are without a win in their last nine fixtures across all competitions and have won just one game since the restart.
The fact that Olise, with two goals and five assists, is their best Dream Team asset is another indication that things aren’t going all that smoothly at Selhurst Park right now.
15. BRIGHTON – SOLLY MARCH (£3.4m) – 12.17%
There’s a cigarette paper between the Seagulls’ best performers with Pascal Gross (£2.8m) on 83 points, Kaoru Mitoma (£3.5m) on 84 points and March leading the way on 88.
This is a case of one position holding up the team rather than one specific player – the aforementioned midfielders have all enjoyed fruitful bursts but Brighton’s defenders and forwards haven’t mustered many returns at all.
14. CHELSEA – THIAGO SILVA (£6m) – 12.82%
The experienced Brazilian is 29 points ahead of his next-best team-mate, Kepa Arrizabalaga (£3.5m), and it’s something of a surprise that he doesn’t feature higher in this list.
Silva has been among the top ten defender pretty much from the get-go in 2022/23 (currently eighth) but the Blues have no midfielders in the top 40 and their best forward, Kai Havertz (£3.3m), is 20th.
Fine wines and all that
13. FULHAM – ALEKSANDAR MITROVIC (£4.4m) – 13%
No prizes for guessing the Cottagers’ best performer this term.
Had we written this article earlier in the season the Serbian No9 would be among the top three names on this list but, partly due to injury niggles, his returns have dropped off in recent weeks – he’s added just three points to his total across the last nine Game Weeks.
Mitrovic’s overall tally of 93 points is still impressive but he’s not the top-tier asset he was during the first third of the season.
12. WOLVES – RUBEN NEVES (£3m) – 14.51%
The Portugal international has quietly earned five Star Man awards so far this season – only four players have more to their name – hence his slightly surprisingly appearance in the top 15 midfielders (84 points).
Wolves were horribly out of form prior to the World Cup but they’ve lost just one of their last seven league games and are heading towards the relative safety of mid table under Julen Lopetegui.
11. MANCHESTER UNITED – MARCUS RASHFORD (£6.5m) – 14.6%
Here’s a fun fact, the Red Devils as a collective have one more point than their “noisy neighbours” with 1,644 to Manchester City’s 1,643 at this stage, making them Dream Team’s outright best team!
Their in-form No10 has been unstoppable of late and his tally of 240 points is second-best overall but the fact Man United are in the bottom half of this list shows Rashford has had plenty of able assistance too.
In fact, seven Old Trafford residents are into double figures – that’s the most centurions of any team.
10. EVERTON – JAMES TARKOWSKI (£2.9m) – 15.14%
Familiar with Dyche-ball
The second of only three defenders on this list.
In characteristic fashion, the no-nonsense centre-back has doubled up at the Toffees’ primary attacking threat since Sean Dyche’s appointment, given the value placed on set pieces.
That being said, Tarkowski has scraped together just 63 points (the second-lowest total of any player listed) and one only team, yet to feature, have fewer points overall than Everton’s 416.
9. LEEDS – RODRIGO (£4m) – 15.49%
The Spanish forward remains one of just seven players to have reached double figures for Premier League goals in 2022/23.
This statistic underlines how much his absence may hurt the Whites in their quest to avoid the drop.
8. NEWCASTLE – KIERAN TRIPPIER (£6.5m) – 16.16%
Generally speaking, the Magpies have relied upon their defensive assets as a whole to amass the bulk of their Dream Team points but their even with Nick Pope (£4.7m) and Fabian Schar (£4.3m) having done so well their vice captain earns a lofty placing in this list because of his massive tally of 191 points.
Kevin De Bruyne (£7.3m) is the only player to have been named Star Man more times than Trippier (seven) this season, a reflection of the England international’s dual purpose at St James’ Park: reliable right-back and prolific chance-creator.
7. TOTTENHAM – HARRY KANE (£8m) – 16.42%
GETTYSpurs’ all-time top scorer[/caption]
Another easy one to guess here, particularly with Son Heung-min (£5.3m) having been under par for long periods.
Kane has 20 goals in all competitions already with roughly a third of the season still to fulfil.
With 179 points, the England skipper is Dream Team’s fifth-best asset overall.
6. LIVERPOOL – MOHAMED SALAH (£8.3m) – 16.74%
The Reds have been a source of persistent frustration for many Dream Team bosses these past few months but at least their Egyptian hero has continued to provide the goods.
Last season’s top points scorer is set for yet another impressive campaign this time around having racked up 182 points.
In previous years, Salah has led the way but been ably supported by a strong backing group, however, with the likes of Virgil van Dijk (£4.7m) and Andy Robertson (£3.8m) operating at half capacity in a Dream Team sense, Liverpool’s No11 has had to perform something of a carry job.
5. MANCHESTER CITY – ERLING HAALAND (£8.9m) – 16.86%
As mentioned earlier, Pep Guardiola’s side are just one point off their local rivals in regards to the best collective totals and even with the usual assortment of world-class midfield returns – De Bruyne, Riyad Mahrez (£6m) and Phil Foden (£4.6m) are all centurions – it’s hard to look past their monstrous No9.
Haaland has made a mockery of English football in his debut campaign on these shores having raced to 27 goals in 24 league appearances – the Golden Boot is already his for all intents and purposes.
His tally of 277 points is borderline freakish at this stage of the campaign but, incredibly, he now faces stiff competition from Rashford in the race to be named Dream Team’s apex predator come the end of term.
4. BRENTFORD – IVAN TONEY (£5.8m) – 17.23%
Brentford’s top marksmanGETTY
Ben Mee (£3.7m) is doing himself proud this season but even so, Toney has a 41-point lead the top of the rankings among the Bees.
The 26-year-old needs just one more goal or assist to pass 20 goal involvements for the campaign and despite not having European fixtures to boost his schedule, he’s well placed to finish among Dream Team’s top five forwards.
3. BOURNEMOUTH – PHILLIP BILLING (£2.6m) – 18.1%
Unfortunately, there’s not much to smile about here.
Billing has mustered just 61 points (most of them coming within the first ten Game Weeks) and somehow that’s enough to account for 18.1% of the Cherries’ team total.
The whole situation just screams: relegation.
2. SOUTHAMPTON – CHE ADAMS (£3.3m) – 20.63%
It’s a similar story at St Mary’s too although Saints’ Scottish forward can hold his head high having earned 91 points.
Granted, Adams’ respectable total owes a lot to his five goals in the Carabao Cup but that’s the beauty of Dream Team, gaffers have to be alert to all possibilities presented by the relevant competitions.
Southampton’s No10 deserves plenty of credit of providing over a fifth of his side’s points to date – any danger of helping him out, lads?
1. ASTON VILLA – OLLIE WATKINS (£4.5m) – 20.85%
GETTYWatkins can’t stop scoring[/caption]
Top of the pile is a striker who is in great form right now.
Watkins has scored in each of his last five games, a prosperous run that has generated 39 points – a superb effort considering he’s played Man City and Arsenal in that time.
The ex-Brentford forward has responded excellently to Unai Emery’s tactics – he now leads the line alone – and 65 points across the last 11 Game Weeks speaks for itself.