Do you agree with our Premier League team of the season so far?

Paul Fennessy

Robin Roefs: One of several astute summer signings by newly-promoted Sunderland. In August, the Black Cats bought the 22-year-old on a five-year deal on the back of a single full season in the Eredivisie with NEC. It has proved an inspired choice as one of the best defensive records in the top flight has helped propel Sunderland to unexpected heights. They are on course not only to avoid relegation — as many pundits initially predicted they would succumb to — but even a top-half finish looks conceivable.

Jurrien Timber: The Netherlands international joined Arsenal from Ajax in the summer of 2023, but it was last season that he properly established himself as a first-team regular. And the 24-year-old has continued to excel this year — he has been an important part of a rock-solid Gunners defence and earned a Premier League Player of the Month nomination in October.

Marc Guehi: The 25-year-old was heavily linked with a move to Liverpool, among others, in the summer window and will surely leave Crystal Palace sooner rather than later. But the centre-back has seemingly not been too affected by all the speculation, as Palace are ninth in the table with Guehi a virtual ever-present in one of the top flight’s most defensively sound backlines.

Gabriel Magalhães: One of the main reasons Arsenal have been consistently near the top of the Premier League is just how difficult it is to score against them. William Saliba often gets much of the praise, but his Brazilian centre-back partner has been similarly impressive. It’s also no coincidence that some of Arsenal’s disappointing results have coincided with either one or both of the pair missing out through injury.

Advertisement

Nico O’Reilly: Despite the many millions Man City spent in the summer, an academy youngster who has been at the club since the age of eight has been one of their standout players this season. Having been perceived as an attacking midfielder until recently, O’Reilly has done a great job as a regular at left-back for a City team in transition. After only playing nine Premier League matches last year, he has featured in all but one for Pep Guardiola’s side this season.

Antoine Semenyo: It’s no surprise to see Semenyo getting linked with some of the Premier League’s top clubs, as he has been a revelation for Bournemouth this season. The London-born Ghana international’s career trajectory illustrates the patience often required for young players to reach the top level, and that footballers like Lamine Yamal starting for Barcelona at 16 are the exception rather than the rule. As a youngster, Semenyo had loan spells in the National League South (Bath City), League Two (Newport County) and League One (Sunderland) before breaking into the Bristol City first team and playing regularly in the Championship for two and a half campaigns before sealing a move to the Premier League. After 11 goals in 37 appearances last season, this should be his best year yet, having already registered nine goals and three assists from 17 top-flight games.

Declan Rice: One of the most reliably consistent top-level Premier League performers. Rice has been involved in every single one of Arsenal’s matches so far this season, contributing two goals and three assists in the process. The 26-year-old’s work ethic and dynamism have driven the Gunners to heady heights, and it’s hard to think of many teams in world football that would not benefit from having the English international in their squad.

Bruno Fernandes: The Portuguese star attracts his fair share of critics, perhaps due to his body language not always being positive and a perceived lack of effort at times. Still, Fernandes’ performances are often hard to argue with. While the Red Devils have struggled over the years, he has invariably been one of the few bright sparks. This season is no exception — no Premier League player has more assists than Fernandes’ seven, while only a couple have managed more than the five goals he has produced. It’s been far from a perfect start to the season for Ruben Amorim’s men, but it would be much worse were it not for the 31-year-old’s contributions.

Phil Foden: After being named the PFA Players’ Player of the Year for the 2023-24 campaign, Foden’s dip in form last season was one of the many reasons why Man City’s defence of their Premier League title unravelled so dramatically and unexpectedly. However, ominously for the other teams in the division, the England international has shown signs of returning to his best this year, even if the Etihad outfit as a team still have room for improvement. Only five players (including teammate Erling Haaland) have managed more than the 25-year-old’s seven goals from 16 appearances. If he continues at that rate, Foden might even eclipse his best-ever tally of 19 during that memorable period the campaign before last.

Igor Thiago: Only Erling Haaland has scored more in the Premier League than Thiago’s 11. The Brazilian only joined Brentford for a club-record €38 million in the January 2024 transfer window from Belgian Pro League side Club Brugge. However, he was injured for a large portion of last season, a factor which contributed to an underwhelming start with 0 goals from his first eight appearances. Yet the 24-year-old has hardly looked back since scoring his first goal for Keith Andrews’ side in August, with this excellent form prompting him to win the Premier League Player of the Month award in November. He has not been capped at senior international level and is eligible to represent both Bulgaria and Brazil. If he keeps his current form up, he could be a dark horse to make the latter’s World Cup squad.

Erling Haaland: Manchester City have been inconsistent this season, but the same cannot be said for their talismanic striker. The Norway international is comfortably ahead in the Premier League scoring charts with 19 goals. And in all competitions, he has a phenomenal 38 in 29 appearances. You’d be hard-pressed to name a more talented and prolific striker in world football, especially based on current form.

Formation (4-4-2): Roefs; Timber, Gabriel, Guehi, O’Reilly; Rice, Fernandes, Semenyo, Foden; Thiago, Haaland.

Subs: David Raya, Riccardo Calafiori, William Saliba, Bruno Guimarães, Granit Xhaka, Morgan Rogers, Rayan Cherki, Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Hugo Ekitike.