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The Premier League is the epicenter of intense battles where some of the best clubs on the planet clash against each other every week. Home to world-class players, the English top-flight has no shortage of excitement or suspense when it comes to providing football matches of the highest order.
There are several positions of importance on the football field, but midfielders usually have to show the greatest versatility. This is because they usually operate between the attackers and the defenders, although there have been exceptions to this rule in modern times.
Therefore, midfielders have to carry out a number of different roles on the pitch, based on the manager's tactics and the overall style of the play. But ball-carrying is extremely important for midfielders in the Premier League.
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Given that they are the link between the attackers and the defenders, carrying the ball and moving it up the pitch is a fundamental duty of a midfielder. Otherwise, defenders have to risk moving forward and getting exposed, and attackers will not be able to get chances to convert.
The Premier League has some true world-class midfielders who exhibit exceptional ability to carry the ball and move it forward. The following list of midfielders leads the rest of the Premier League on parameters like carries/90 and total distance carried. These are some of the dedicated attributes to measure the ball-carrying ability.
#5 Jordan Henderson | Liverpool
The Liverpool captain has gone on from being just another Premier League signing to becoming one of the most decorated players in the club's history.
Signed from Sunderland, Jordan Henderson has become a formidable player in Liverpool's lineup. It's no surprise that the Anfield faithful so deeply love him.
The English midfielder was an important member of the Liverpool side that finally won their first Premier League title in nearly three decades. Henderson also helped the Reds add a Champions League title in 2019.
As a player, Henderson is a typical no-nonsense midfielder renowned for his tenacity and endurance in the Premier League. He excels as a ball carrier with 60.2 carries per 90 and 268.7m total distance per 90. Additionally, Henderson has a progressive distance coverage per 90 of 118.7m, and his total carried distance stands at 3654m.
#4 Rodri Hernandez | Manchester City
Rodri Hernandez, or simply Rodri, has truly evolved as the natural successor to Fernandinho for Manchester City.
The Spaniard joined the Premier League from Atletico Madrid and took some time to settle down. But Rodri has now established himself as an important cog in Pep Guardiola's system at the Etihad. He is extremely tenacious and has an excellent defensive work rate with tremendous intercepting and tackling ability.
But Rodri is not only about his defensive abilities as the midfielder is one of the best ball-progressors in the Premier League. The midfielder accumulates 65.8 carries per 90 and has a total carried distance of 4103m.
Moreover, he covers a progressive distance per 90 of 130.2m and a total distance per 90 of 268.7m. This puts him at fourth position among all current Premier League midfielders.
#3 Yves Bissouma | Brighton & Hove Albion
Brighton and Hove Albion midfielder Yves Bissouma has been on the radar of several Premier League clubs for some time now. The hard-tackling midfielder has taken his game to a different level in the last couple of seasons.
Bissouma's general gameplay may not seem attractive, but he is an extremely efficient midfielder. His overall style of play in Graham Potter's system is a hybrid of a pure defensive midfielder and a more orthodox central midfielder.
Aside from a keen eye for making interceptions, Bissouma is also known for his box-to-box gameplay. He is a great carrier of the ball with 45.8 carries per 90. His total distance per 90 is at 279.1m, and he covers 133.3m of progressive distance per 90 as well.
In the Premier league, Bissouma has a total carried distance of 5081m which is one of the highest among midfielders.
#2 Declan Rice | West Ham United
England midfielder Declan Rice has quickly become one of the hottest commodities in the Premier League. Rice is one of the best midfielders in the Premier League right now despite his young age.
It has brought him on the radar of giants like Chelsea and Manchester United, and come the summer of 2022, there could be a huge bidding war over the midfielder. However, it will not be a shock, given Rice's immense rise in the heart of West Ham United's midfield.
Traditionally a defensive midfielder, Rice has evolved the ability to carry the ball. The results are crystal clear as he has a total carried distance of 5798m, the highest among any midfielder in the Premier League.
In addition, he achieves 45.5 carries per 90, 341.1m of total distance per 90 and 176.6m of progressive distance per 90, which lets Rice set the bar pretty high.
#1 Bernardo Silva | Manchester City
Bernardo Silva has been on fire in the current Premier League season. He has been scoring goals and assists and has once again become a kind of guaranteed starter in the star-studded Manchester City squad.
There have been occasions in the past where the Portuguese's performances have not quite been up to the mark and he was even on the verge of departing the Etihad. But that has not been the case in the current season, as Silva has kept both Riyad Mahrez and Ferran Torres on the bench for extended stretches.
The 27-year-old has always been one of the most skilled midfielders in the Premier League. He is extremely good to watch with his silky dribbling and is an excellent ball-carrier who can sometimes become a nightmare to contain for the opposition defense.
Silva has registered 54.5 carries per 90 in the current campaign. In addition, he has 319.5m of total distance per 90 and 180.1m of progressive distance per90. All of this has finally resulted in him recording a league-high total carried distance of 3182m.
