Oftentimes bias and momentary hype can inflate a players status in the footballing world. One solo performance or a team performance that ends in an important result can create more fanfare than warranted. An inclusion on this list does not mean a lack of quality but rather a lack of correlation between exposure, PR and hype compared to their quality and performances as of late.
10. Rúben Dias
At first glance, this choice may be odd considering the name Ruben Dias has faded from the spotlight. Especially since the treble-winning season, the acclaim he has garnered has not been as prominent as before. But nonetheless, Dias is still often mentioned in debates about who is amongst the best central defenders in the world or Premier League despite not showing up in moments of importance. Defenders in just the Premier League alone such as William Saliba, Virgil Van Dijk, and Gabriel have all displayed world class level performances against quality opposition on a consistent basis whilst Ruben Dias was part of the side that lost 1-0 to Crystal Palace in the FA Cup final, both embarrassing Champions League losses to Real Madrid and so on. His name is likely too generously shoved into conversations where it shouldn’t, but it isn’t a slight towards his ability, just to the caliber of which he is spoken about of which he is not the level of.
9. Matz Sels
Maybe at first glance the inclusion of Belgian goalkeeper Matz Sels of Nottingham Forest in the Premier League makes no sense, but the conversation surrounding the experienced Belgian international is genuinely nonsensical. Sels was part of the underdog Forest side that charged to European football in the 24/25 campaign after a transfer from Strasbourg in France. He won the golden glove jointly with David Raya of Arsenal for 13 clean sheets in the season. The Belgian was considered as the best goalkeeper in the 24/25 Premier League season despite having a lower saves per 90 than Raya, Ederson and Alisson just to name a few. Whilst he did not have a bad campaign, the performances he displayed were not as impressive as per say a David Raya or Alisson who had made double penalty saves, and other such impressive saves that make them more talented than Sels. Sels, albeit, did have one of the better campaigns in the Premier League in goal but to say he was the best would be ignoring the performances of David Raya who would be the best goalkeeper in the Premier League off of merit.
8. Désiré Doué
This may be a bit of a ‘hot take’ for some, but Désiré Doué is included in far too many conversations in which he does not belong. While he was an important piece to the puzzle of the Champions League winning Paris Saint-Germain side, his goals in the final definitely pumped up his reputation in the footballing world more than he deserves. When the season began he wasn’t even near the conversation of starter, as players such as Bradley Barcola or Ousmane Dembélé took the starting roles. He did work his way in largely due to shortcomings from Barcola and a run of poor form from Paris Saint-Germain near the beginning and midway points to the season. But when people began comparing him to generational talent Lamine Yamal, that’s when the comparisons got out of hand. His finishing ability is likely better than the 18 year old spanish international’s but other than that, Yamal has proven to be one of the best wingers in the world. Doué, of course, is talented and his time will come to be included in the best winger in the world conversation.
7. Bruno Fernandes
Another hot take that may stir the pot is the placement of Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes. His presence in the recently struggling side has certainly helped the red devils stay afloat in the Premier League, but it cannot be overstated how overrated he has been in the past few campaigns. He has been labelled the ‘best 10 in the Premier League’ or a ‘Manchester United legend’, but a shiny rock in a pile of rocks is still a rock. Fernandes is PART of the side that placed 15th in the Premier League in the 24/25 season and his captaincy did little to nothing to get them out of such an embarrassing spot. When it became crunch time in, for example, the final of the Europa League against Tottenham Hotspur, he barely was able to get involved in the match, ceding the midfield dominance to Spurs. His run of red cards this season, accumulating 3 as captain, showed a lack of discipline and patience that is required to captain one of the most historic sides in England, Europe and the world. While he is not a bad player by any stretch of the imagination his importance, quality and role in the team’s successful performances are hugely overblown and overrated.
6. Benjamin Šeško
For being one of the most sought after center forwards in the European footballing landscape, Benjamin Šeško is shockingly non-prolific. Now before I slate his goalscoring record, I must note that he is still developing, being a young striker from Slovenia. But 13 league goals in 30 matches is not a great record for the starting striker in the Bundesliga. He shared the goals with Loïs Openda of Belgium, yes, but he generated far more hype, perhaps due to his age and ‘promise’. He was one of Arsenal’s striker targets but was relatively quickly dropped before they acquired Gyökeres from Sporting. The likes of Manchester United and Newcastle United are clamoring for his signature, but his factual performances from the past seasons are nothing special for a striker of his caliber and certainly not the price tag. He does seem a promising player, but having him as a starting striker in a league like the Premier League seems like a huge step up. Whilst it’s not fair to write him off entirely, it is wrong to put him in the same league as Viktor Gyökeres and proven Premier League such as Ollie Watkins who have put up better numbers in the Premier League for years.
5. Moises Caicedo
This is one that may ruffle feathers, but Moises Caicedo is not the best holding midfielder in the world, much less the Premier League. He has yet to truly take over a BIG game and run the tempo like a Rodri, Kanté, Zubimendi, Rice when he was a holding midfielder, and so on. When the Ecuadorian faces the likes of Liverpool, Arsenal, and so on, he doesn’t grab hold of the midfield battle. Chelsea’s achievements with the player are relatively unremarkable in the Club World Cup and Conference League. When Caicedo is forced to be in an environment of a winning mentality to go for the Premier League or Champions League, not even to win it, then perhaps we’ll see what he’s really made of. There has been many times where he can be overly physical or doesn’t get to control the tempo as he needs to in order to be considered one of the best. The name doesn’t striker fear into players as he doesn’t impose himself onto a game. There is a likelihood he further improves his game and perhaps with better partners in the midfield and defense he can grow to the acumen he’s been described to have, but so far the 100 million plus price tag has yet to pay off like, for example, a Declan Rice.
4. Morgan Gibbs-White
If I had to choose the player who most exemplifies the English player tax, it would be Morgan Gibbs-White of Nottingham Forest. Tottenham Hotspur attempted to buy the attacking midfielder by paying a release clause but were rejected and perhaps luckily so. When paired up against established sides such as Arsenal, Newcastle, or Liverpool, he struggles to stamp himself on the game. Goals and assists aren’t really his pay grade as he managed 7 goals and 8 assists in the Premier League and 0 G/A in domestic competition outside of the league in 4 matches. His price tag was not congruent with his output and he was part of the Forrest side that struggled to maintain a top 5 status in the Premier League, falling short near the finish line and not securing Champions League football despite being so close for a large portion of the season. He is a young player it must be noted, so he has a chance to flourish in the coming seasons after renewing with the club, but the 25 year old has found his level at Nottingham Forest and perhaps it is as good as he can do. It may seem harsh in theory but when Tottenham and Forest are the only two sides clamoring for your signature, perhaps the tangibility of the hype manifested around the player is overdone.
3. Enzo Fernandez
Chelsea fans may whine and moan at the inclusion of World Cup winner Enzo Fernandez in the top 3 most overrated players in the world, but it is warranted. The Argentine came into the club in the January transfer window for over a 100 million price tag. He didn’t exactly hit the ground running and the club finished in the bottom half. Since then they have yet to challenge for a notable competition such as the Premier League or Champions League and he has championed the mediocre midfield as his own. His name is, for some reason, mentioned with some of the best in the world, but oftentimes when he meets up against them he falters. As a more defensive minded midfielder, goals and assists shouldn’t be factored in directly to his quality although he has managed 6 goals and 7 assists in the Premier League in the 24/25 campaign. Against established sides in the Premier League such as Manchester City or Arsenal he had quiet games, although he did show out in the Conference League final against Real Betis, but the quality gap is significant in terms of midfield, in which Betis only really had Johnny Cardoso who was up to the task in the midfield and as a result Enzo Fernandez was allowed to go forward and manage a goal and assist. Enzo Fernandez’s lack of ability to take over a match and control the tempo against teams Chelsea wish to compete with is evident and as a result he is extremely overrated and is often generously included in debates in which he is not welcome.
2. Cole Palmer
This placement may definitely turn some heads, but the conversation surrounding Cole Palmer is getting ridiculous. It’s fair to say that he is not the best at any position he plays on the pitch, as Musiala, Wirtz or a number of center attacking midfielders are more talented and consistent and it goes without saying he’s a worse right sided attacker than Mohamed Salah, Lamine Yamal, Bukayo Saka, and so on. This is also the same player that went 6 months without scoring a goal despite being the resident penalty taker at Chelsea and their star player / attacker. He’s compared to the best in the world despite not winning or competing for anything significant such as the Champions League or Premier League. It must be said he has a long way to go in his career but to say he is a player in the echelon of those I mentioned before is to ignore his various shortcomings. There is a reason he often doesn’t start for England, largely because he’s not the best at any position, but rather a solid candidate in many. Oftentimes I’ll hear blasphemous things such as ‘Palmer is the best English player’ or ‘He’s the best player in the Premier League’ which is unbelievable considering he’s only just about to play his first Premier League season with Chelsea in the Champions League and had 6 months without a goal may I remind you, which the likes of Salah, Haaland, Saka and others have outdone massively. Palmer’s perception is based around a Chelsea team full of inexperienced players with little to no history of competing for major titles, and as a result a good or standard performance against the likes of Everton or Burnley, compared to the players on Chelsea like Nicolas Jackson or Robert Sanchez, looks like a masterclass.
1. Vinicius Junior
Vinicius Junior is the worst player in Real Madrid’s starting eleven. This conclusion is one that a non-Real Madrid fan would come to after watching the underwhelming season Vinicius Junior had after the 24/25 campaign. After missing out on the Ballon D’Or, the door was open for Vinicius Junior to show the world that he deserves it. He then proceeded to win no trophies, go silent throughout the season and be subject to rumors about a move to the Saudi Pro League. In the 23/24 campaign, he was regarded as one of the better players, but if we look at the beginning of the summer and end of the season, going into the Euro / Copa America, the frontrunner for the Ballon D’Or was Jude Bellingham after a double winning season with Real Madrid. After the loss in the Euro final to Spain, Bellingaham’s case for the Ballon D’Or was severely harmed. In a scramble from Real Madrid fans to appoint a new Ballon D’Or candidate to distract from their main candidate falling short on the biggest international stage, they got behind Vinicius Junior who scored in the final and was an attacking player. His season was significantly less impressive than Jude Bellingham who ended the 23/24 campaign with 3 more G/A than Vinicius Junior. The clutch performances of Jude Bellingham against the likes of rivals Barcelona you would think would make him the leader going into the Ballon D’Or and yet for some reason Vinicius Junior took the mantle of favorite. Vincius Junior’s most recent campaign saw a significant drop off in G/A and a plethora of unsavory clashes and behavior in which he got a red card in a must-win league match against Valencia at the turn of the year. Mbappé came into the club and overshadowed Vinicius Junior despite being out of position, being their top goalscorer and putting out masterclass displays in the Champions League and LaLiga. Vinicius Junior has been labelled as ‘just as good’ as Mbappé and Jude Bellingham but has yet to consistently bring the quality those two bring. He did not deserve the Ballon D’Or in the 23/24 campaign and certainly not for the 24/25 campaign. He never was and may never be the best player in the world and when he is labelled as such, it is an injustice to the players who deserve to be considered the best player in the world.