An unusually competitive title battle may be dominating English football’s agenda this season, but look further down the Premier League and there are plenty of intriguing storylines to be found.
We asked our experts at The Athletic to name the players that have most impressed from each club outside the top 10 — including two from Bournemouth…
Ross Barkley
Club: Luton Town
Position: Midfielder
Age: 30
Luton’s rise has been built on collective strength, but the renaissance of Ross Barkley, a decade after he burst onto the scene at Everton, is one of the many uplifting and unexpected redemption stories.
After a deeply unfulfilling period at Chelsea and a stop-start spell on loan to Nice, Barkley was out of contract and it wasn’t easy to imagine a Premier League club taking a chance on him. But after a slow start, building up his fitness levels, he has begun to thrive under Rob Edwards at Luton — no longer the free-spirited No 10 of his Everton days but a more disciplined, measured presence in midfield.
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It is four years since the last of his 33 England caps, but a recall doesn’t feel beyond the realms of possibility. Nor does a transfer at the end of the season, given that he initially signed only a one-year contract, but Barkley might feel that, at Luton, he has found the right environment at last.
Oliver Kay
Joao Palhinha
Club: Fulham
Position: Midfielder
Age: 28
Joao Palhinha is unique. There is no one else like him in the Premier League, nor arguably in European football.
The 28-year-old is the top flight’s most prolific tackler — and by a considerable margin. He leads the way with 84; 18 more than second-placed Vincent Souza of Sheffield United. Last season, he made 148. Moises Caicedo, then of Brighton & Hove Albion and now Chelsea, trailed him in second with 100.
Winning back the ball is the bedrock of his game and is an art he has perfected. An aggressive defensive midfielder, Palhinha can transform the momentum of any match with one thunderous slide tackle. He is tailor-made for the Premier League. “It’s the league with my characteristics,” Palhinha told The Athletic last season. “I can do the tackles that I want!”
Tackling is an art-form. João Palhinha is the master. 🤌 pic.twitter.com/sh4YDmanbc
— Fulham Football Club (@FulhamFC) June 9, 2023
There is more to his game than crisp challenges, though. His positional intelligence and distribution help him dominate the centre of midfield and he is a key reason Marco Silva’s side have adapted so seamlessly to the Premier League since their return in 2022.
That is also why he has caught the eye of Europe’s biggest clubs, including Bayern Munich. For now, though, he is Fulham’s talisman.
Peter Rutzler
Jarrad Branthwaite
Club: Everton
Position: Central defender
Age: 21
It has been a season of progress for Jarrad Branthwaite, with any doubts over his ability to thrive in the Premier League quickly dispelled.
Since returning from a productive loan at PSV Eindhoven, he has slotted seamlessly into Sean Dyche’s side, forging a solid centre-back partnership with James Tarkowski.
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Deceptively quick, commanding in the air and adept at playing out from the back, Branthwaite has every attribute you could want from a modern central defender.
One of his greatest virtues is his ability to step out of the back line and win possession. Before last weekend’s defeat to Wolves, he had regained the ball more than any other central defender in the league.
The sense at Goodison Park is that it won’t be long before England manager Gareth Southgate comes calling, especially considering his relative lack of options at centre-back.
Patrick Boyland
Ivan Toney
Club: Brentford
Position: Striker
Age: 27
Bryan Mbeumo was one of the most in-form players in the division, scoring seven goals and assisting four in 15 appearances, before suffering an ankle injury that will keep him out for three months.
He deserves a special mention but is not even the best player in Brentford’s squad. That honour belongs to Ivan Toney, who will be available for their next game against Nottingham Forest after serving an eight-month ban for betting offences. Toney will return with a point to prove, eager to rediscover the goalscoring form that earned him an England cap last year and help lead his side away from the relegation zone.
Toney scored 20 times in 33 appearances last season — only Erling Haaland and Harry Kane had better records. The 27-year-old has been training for the last four months and has played behind-closed-doors friendlies so the hope is he will hit the ground running.
Jay Harris
Alex Scott
Club: Bournemouth
Position: Midfielder
Age: 20
Alex Scott is the most naturally gifted player in Bournemouth’s ranks. Considering he has only made four starts and played fewer than 350 minutes of Premier League football following his £25million ($30.3m) signing in August, such a label might appear premature. But if you see Scott’s swagger as he glides through midfield, you can understand the thinking.
Injuries have hampered him but fans were reminded of Scott’s talents against Fulham on Boxing Day as he danced through the centre of the pitch to assist Justin Kluivert for a simple finish.
Rolled-down socks, driving runs forward and an eye for a pass that defies his age — when Scott gets a consistent run of games in the second half of this season, he’ll be drawing even more attention.
Mark Carey
Michael Olise
Club: Crystal Palace
Position: Winger
Age: 22
Despite missing much of the season after tearing his hamstring in the summer with France Under-21s, Michael Olise has somehow managed to improve on his incredibly high standards.
He is capable of tormenting even the best defences. He has scored five times in nine Premier League appearances this season, including four goals (and an assist) in Palace’s last four games. Last season, only three players registered more than his 11 assists.
Few players in England are as capable of dribbling past their man and he also contributes defensively. It is not surprising that Chelsea tried to prise him away in the summer before he signed a new four-year contract with Palace.
He has become the club’s best and most important player, and they will do well to keep hold of him for much longer.
Matt Woosnam
Mario Lemina
Club: Wolverhampton Wanderers
Position: Midfielder
Age: 30
In some ways, Wolves will be thankful that Mario Lemina turned 30 last September and not 25. If the Gabon international were a little younger and had more resale value, there is every chance they would be fending off interest this month from clubs higher up the Premier League.
When Wolves signed Lemina 12 months ago, he seemed like a handy addition given his Premier League experience with Southampton and Fulham. Instead, the former Juventus midfielder has become the team’s heartbeat.
He impressed in the second half of last season, sitting in front of the back four and giving former captain Ruben Neves the licence to influence games further forward.
But this season, under Gary O’Neil, Lemina has taken his game to new heights, winning tackles, making key passes and adding goals, with four in the first half of the campaign.
Steve Madeley
Morgan Gibbs-White
Club: Nottingham Forest
Position: Attacking midfield
Age: 23
Morgan Gibbs-White had a slight dip in form under Steve Cooper when asked to operate as a right-sided forward. But since being restored to his preferred No 10 role by his former Wolves head coach Nuno Espirito Santo, he has shown that he is the most creative, intelligent and industrious attacking threat in the Nottingham Forest ranks.
Nuno has also retained Gibbs-White as his captain — and he has responded by producing a trio of performances which have only served to underline his quality and importance to Forest.
His winning goal against Manchester United was a thing of beauty and he was also outstanding at St James’ Park when Forest beat Newcastle 3-1 on Boxing Day.
Forest invested an initial fee of £25million to sign Gibbs-White. You suspect that, at some stage, they will make a profit on him. Forest fans will hope that day will be a long way off.
Paul Taylor
Dominic Solanke
Club: Bournemouth
Position: Striker
Age: 26
Dominic Solanke’s potential has turned into hard goalscoring numbers. His importance to Bournemouth has not been in question for several years — he was influential in promotion under Scott Parker and led the line in a largely thankless counter-attacking system under O’Neil last season.
With Andoni Iraola in charge, however, Solanke’s Swiss Army knife capabilities have translated into goals. Despite some early teething issues, when Solanke was among a group of players unsure of their roles, he is now a key cog in Iraola’s transitional system. Solanke has signed two new contracts in successive years, underlining his status, but this season, he has already scored 12 goals in 19 appearances, doubling his previous-best Premier League tally of six (from 33).
Aside from the goals, Solanke’s link play connects the three creative players behind him and he remains the trigger in Iraola’s ferocious press. The difference now is that the system is built around Solanke starting and finishing attacks. Do not rule out a first England call-up since November 2017.
Jacob Tanswell
Lyle Foster
Club: Burnley
Position: Striker
Age: 23
Entering this season, the jury was still out about whether Lyle Foster could lead Burnley’s front line in the Premier League.
After arriving 12 months ago, he took time to adapt to Championship football. Those close to the striker, however, felt that the Premier League would be more suited to his attributes. They have been proven right as Foster has scored four goals and provided three assists in 11 appearances for a Burnley side struggling in the relegation zone.
His most recent performance against Aston Villa showcased all of his best attributes. He is cool and confident in front of goal, has the speed to stretch opposition defences, presses relentlessly and uses his physicality to hold up the ball and then link play.
Burnley are a better team when Foster is their focal point in attack. They missed him when he was out of action for two months as he took a break from football to receive treatment for his mental health.
Now he is back, enjoying his football, and is crucial to Burnley’s survival hopes.
Andy Jones
Jack Robinson
Club: Sheffield United
Position: Left-back
Age: 30
Sheffield United’s predicament at the foot of the Premier League may be wholly predictable, considering the club’s two best players, Iliman Ndiaye and Sander Berge, were sold last summer to weaken an already thin-looking squad.
But the terrible results — United have just nine points from 20 games — should not take away from the tremendous effort being put in by some.
Jack Robinson typifies this hard work ethic, putting his body on the line amid what, at times, has felt like wave upon wave of opposition attacks. He’s never shirked a challenge or thrown the towel in, either, under both Paul Heckingbottom and Chris Wilder.
Being made captain for the final fixture of 2023 against Manchester City in Anel Ahmedhodzic’s absence was recognition of that never-say-die attitude, not least because Wilder wants whoever wears the armband to lead by example.
In a season in which goals have been as hard to come by as points, Robinson’s long throw has also proved a useful attacking tool.
Richard Sutcliffe