5 players who will play a pivotal role for EPL clubs in the 2015/16 season

Last season, we had Harry Kane sharing the bulk of the goalscoring burden for Tottenham, Esteban Cambiasso steering Leicester away from relegation, David De Gea providing an effective last line of defence and Jose Fonte leading Southampton’s miserly back-line. As we head into the new Premier League season, fans of Premier League clubs will be hoping that certain players can step up and make the difference for their respective clubs.As the season progresses, a club’s best players becomes evident to both the fans and the staff. We profile 5 players who might be crucial to their clubs come the end of the 2015/16 season.

#5 Nemanja Matic - Chelsea

When Matic left Chelsea for Benfica in a cash-plus-player deal for David Luiz, little did he know that one day, he would become the best holding midfielder in the Premier League. Three-and-a-half years later, Luiz left for PSG, having been humiliated by Luis Suarez in the Champions League while Matic has had a stellar season, winning plaudits from commentators, players and fans alike.

Matic is your old-fashioned no-nonsense anchor-man, whose first job is to shield his defence. Known as a “monster” and a “brick wall”, it is very difficult to imagine anyone or anything, getting past Matic en-route to the Chelsea goal.

The 6’4” Serbian was initially a playmaker, having been converted into a defensive midfielder by former Benfica boss Jorge Jesus. Such is his talent that Jose Mourinho declared that he would never have let Matic depart if he was present at the time at the club.

Last season, Matic made sure he did the dirty work in midfield, cutting passes out, putting important blocks in place, tough-tackling onrushing attackers and intercepting killer through balls. This ensured that the players ahead of him, especially the man beside him, Cesc Fabregas, could concentrate on their attacking duties, with the knowledge that the defence was safe with Matic as the protector.

Matic made a league-high 128 tackles, 13 ahead of his nearest competitor, Nathaniel Clyne. While his best performances came in the Champions League, his performances in the League were not far behind, Matic picking up 6 Man of the Match awards for his efforts.

Chelsea fans and the defence, in particular, will be hoping that Matic can replicate his efforts from the previous season. The “Great Wall of Chelsea” looks the real deal, and could be crucial to Chelsea’s title defence.

#4 David Silva - Manchester City

What’s the connection between David Blaine and David Silva? Apart from both being Davids, they are world-class magicians. Like Blaine, Silva or ‘Merlin’, as he is also known, is capable of unlocking things in tricky situations, like stubborn defences.

When Silva moved from Valencia to Manchester City in the summer of 2010, it was a no-brainer. A World Cup and a Euro winner by the time he was 24, his silky touch on the ball was only surpassed by his raking passes tearing up opposition defences.

In five seasons in the Premier League, Silva has only cemented his reputation as one of the finest pass-masters not only in this league but in the world. Although Silva had an average season in the assists tally by his own standards, his performances were key to City’s final position. In what was a disappointing campaign for City, Silva lit up the Etihad with his performances, achieving his best goalscoring season till date, with 12 goals, second only to Sergio Aguero at Man City.

His phenomenal passing might not have resulted in more assists, but the Spaniard still had an average of 2.9 key passes per game, second only to Mesut Ozil in the whole of the Premier League, having made 10 appearances more than the German.

As City embark on another rebuilding exercise, they would do well to remember that one of their best assets is still their Spanish maestro, the conductor of City orchestras, past and future. After all, it is not every day that you have Merlin on your team.

#3 Santi Cazorla - Arsenal

At the start of the 2014/15 season, Cazorla’s starting position as an attacking midfielder was under threat due to the emergence of new talent, in particular, the acquisition of Chilean Alexis Sanchez. The presence of Mesut Ozil, Alexis, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Aaron Ramsey and Francis Coquelin meant that competition for places was high and that only the very best would be able to nail down starting places in the line-up.

Cue one of Arsene Wenger’s masterstrokes. The experienced French manager took the diminutive midfielder and pushed him further back into a deeper midfield role. Cazorla took to his new position like a fish to the water, appearing 22 times for the Gunners in a central midfield or a holding midfield role.

However, the versatility of Cazorla was not lost on Wenger, who used the Spaniard in six different positions on the pitch, each yielding a reasonable amount of success. Of these, only 10 came in his favourite central attacking midfield role, where he thrived nonetheless, scoring 5 goals and assisting a further 6, for a rating of 8.19.

Cazorla’s ball skills are complemented by his a set-piece threat and a keen eye for the pass. His total of 11 assists in the league was second only to Cesc Fabregas and he scored a further 7 for his most prolific season ever.

The Spaniard’s big match experience and international success is one of Arsenal’s greatest assets. Santi’s appetite for the grand occasion was evident in Arsenal’s 4-0 win over Aston Villa in the FA Cup final where he was voted Man of the Match.

At 30, Cazorla made a total of 37 appearances in the League, 4 of them coming from the bench. However, as he showed last season, age is no factor as he garnered a WhoScored rating of 7.60, to be among the top 5 in the Premier League. Arsenal fans will hope that his form continues this season as Wenger and co. look to garner more silverware.

#2 Christian Eriksen - Tottenham Hotspur

Trivia time: Who was the youngest player to take part in the 2010 World Cup and is the youngest Danish player ever to score a goal in European qualification? If you guessed Christian Eriksen, then you were as accurate as an Eriksen free-kick.

With all the hype surrounding Harry Kane, it is very easy to overlook Eriksen’s contribution to Spurs’ 2014/15 campaign. He was one of three Spurs players to notch up 10 goals and only Kane was responsible for single-handedly winning Spurs more points than Eriksen did.

One stand-out feature of Eriksen’s campaign under new manager Mauricio Pochettino was his increased fitness levels. He scored late winners on multiple occasions last season against the likes of Swansea, Sunderland, Hull and others. Tottenham’s Player of the Year in his inaugural season in English football (2013/14) played all 38 league games for Pochettino’s men last season, and only one as a substitute.

For all of Eriksen’s poise and elegance on the ball, his other skills are sometimes easily forgotten. His long shots and whipped free-kicks have become a feature of Spurs’ style. Arguably the best goal of his season was a 30-yard free kick against Sheffield United in the semi-finals of the Capital One Cup.

Eriksen poses a considerable threat from all set-pieces and his passing and holding on the ball in the final third is an important component of Spurs’ attacking threat. His average of 2.2 key passes per game was the highest among all Spurs’ players.

Still only 23, Eriksen has already forged a considerable reputation for himself, one which keeps growing larger by the day. Spurs could do worse than build their team around him this season, although Eriksen’s performances will continue to be monitored by European football’s powerhouses.

#1 Morgan Schneiderlin - Manchester United

This summer, as Schneiderlin left Southampton after 7 years at the club, Saints fans must be wondering whether the potential £24 million fee that they received for him will ultimately make the difference between European qualification and a mid-table finish. Southampton’s growth has been almost parallel to Schneiderlin’s, the Frenchman having been with the club through spells in League One, the Championship and the Premier League.

Now with Saints knocking on the door of Europe, Schneiderlin himself has left to pursue his dream of playing Champions League football. Last season, he was in imperious form for the club, achieving a club high rating of 7.51 from WhoScored. By comparison, the next highest rating of any player at the club belonged to Jose Fonte, with 7.20. Schneiderlin’s style of play is exactly what United have been lacking for a long time in the midfield void left by former captain Roy Keane.

Schneiderlin’s strengths – tackling, aerial duels and interceptions – would come in handy in front of a defence which looked wobbly at times last season. His average of 3.7 tackles per game was the second highest among Premier League players to have made at least 20 appearances last season. Of all the Saints players, only Fonte made more interceptions per 90 minutes.

His passing accuracy of 89.3% was comfortably the highest amongst all Saints players and was just a shade below United’s best player, Micheal Carrick with 89.6%, who he might partner in midfield this season. Schneiderlin’s all-action playing style meant that he was injured for long spells last season and managed to make only 25 league appearances. However, this may be viewed as an aberration, as he had made 33, 36 and 42 league appearances (in the Championship) in the three seasons before that.

Should United keep him fit for the majority of the season, the Schneiderlin-Blind-Carrick-Schweinsteiger combine could prove to be one of the most effective and potent midfield forces in the league.

Edited by Staff Editor