5 most overrated Premier League players to watch out for?

Remember that guy in the class that worked half as hard as you, but used to get thrice the credit from the teachers, your classmates and, more devastatingly, the girls? One of my childhood wishes was to see the fraud exposed, but it never really came to fruition because everyone had an image to maintain and/or he had covered his tracks. Mostly, the latter.

Well, there are certain players in the game of football that exude the same aura as the guy mentioned above. They are treated like world beaters due to some flashy moments but are nowhere near as good as people make them out to be.

This slideshow is about these players and here are the five overrated Premier League players that you should keep an eye out for and stop wetting tissues over them…

---

#5 Kyle Walker

As recently as two seasons ago, Kyle Walker wouldn’t have been worth even a quarter of the amount that Manchester City paid for him this summer. He was somewhat of a pace-merchant who couldn’t put in an accurate cross to save his life.

Under the tutelage of Mauricio Pochettino, however, he improved a lot, but is still not a world beater that his price-tag might have suggested. He has an insane amount of pace that helps him beat his man, but his decision-making always leaves a lot to be desired.

His transfer to Manchester City made him the most expensive defender and it would have been that way had Benjamin Mendy not interfered. Even with his gradual development, he is still not the second best full-back – heck, he is not even in the top 10 – like his transfer price puts him.

#4 Marcus Rashford

Rashford has talent, but is still raw

Yes, yes, I know. He is a new kid on the block, so it might be unfair to put him here. Give him some time and he will be world class. Yeah, I get these arguments – and that is the point, he is still only a kid – but the fact that most Manchester United fans seem to think that he is better than Kylian Mbappe is taking exaggeration to another level.

Rashford is a brilliant talent; of this, there is no doubt. He is perhaps the best thing to come out of Manchester United’s academy since the fabled class of ’92, but he still has a long way to go and is not yet the player most of them think he is.

While he might have great ball-controlling skills, his decision-making is still very raw and it will improve time, but he is not there just yet.

#3 Aaron Ramsey

Ramsey's career could have been even better

His inclusion might irk some Gooners, but Aaron Ramsey is far from the player that most of them make him out of to be. As a free-roaming midfielder, he does a commendable job. However, put some tactical burden on him and he doesn’t remain the same player.

The mark of a true quality central midfielder is that he not only helps set the tempo of the team, but also keep the team together by carrying out the tactical instructions to the letter – something that we are yet to see in Aaron Ramsey.

The Welsh international promised a lot as a teenager, but that challenge from Ryan Shawcross might have taken away the player that was promised to the football fraternity. Since that injury, Ramsey might have made a comeback, but he hasn’t lived up to the promise that his supreme talent once laid out.

#2 Ross Barkley

Barkley could take his game to another level under Pochettino

When he burst onto the scene, Ross Barkley was England’s greatest hope. Raging from one box to another, there was seemingly no stopping the Everton man when he was at the top of his game. Like an angry bull, he dismantled defences with his directness while also helping his team’s backline.

However, his growth seems to have stagnated over the last season or so and he now looks set to move to Spurs as Everton close in on Gylfi Sigurdsson. A move to Spurs might rejuvenate him to the player that some seem to think that he already is – a top-class midfielder that decides the outcome of a game.

Right now, though, he is far from such a distinction, but the hype surrounding him might suggest otherwise. The talent is there, but he is quite a bit away from realising it just yet.

#1 Jordan Henderson

Henderson has heart -- and that's about it

I have just realised that the inclusion of Jordan Henderson makes this list an all-British compilation of players who are good, but not as great as the people make them out to be. Henderson was once a heavily-criticised player at Anfield. His move coincided with an ill-fated tenure of the club under Kenny Dalglish.

However, as it turned out, Henderson turned the tides and has started to repay the faith that the club have shown in him – but he still doesn't ooze the quality that a player, who is the captain no less, of a club like Liverpool, should.

Some make it sound as though he is the Roy Keane of Liverpool, when the truth is that he is very, very far behind the player that the Manchester United legend was. Henderson might yet hit prime and go on to become the player that some make him out to be, but he is not there as of yet.