Meanwhile, German defenderFranz Beckenbauerplayed a thankless position at center-back, yet won two Ballon d'Or awards. Age: 30 Position: Defender Club: Real Madrid Copyright 2023 Sporting News Holdings Limited. There is also a belief that Cristiano Ronaldo's presence is another complication for Fernandes, but the World Cup offers the 28-year-old the opportunity to finally break out on the international stage. 2018 Rank: 3. PHIM B HAY. Age: 34 The Slovenian glovesman is still just 29 and could well retire as one of the best of a generation: he's already one of his club and country's most revered footballers of all time. Position: Midfielder If there is any issue that is possibly holding Davies back, it is the fact that his muscular body appears to be prone to injuries. Country: Cameroon Even with his PSG future in doubt, the Argentine continues to excel in Ligue 1, dazzling with flashes of skill and trickery that simply nobody else on the planet can muster up. If you don't receive an email, please check your spam or Promotions Tab and "move us" to your primary inbox! Joao Felix is so phenomenally talented and yet Atletico Madrid don't exactly play to his strengths. -- Constantin Eckner, Country: Uruguay Rudiger leads by example with his aggressive defensive style, partial to a bursting forward run that helped make him a popular figure at Stamford Bridge, although he has only started roughly half of Madrid's matches this season. - Don't have ESPN? Age: 31 TopDrawerSoccer rankings will return in a few weeks with the fall updates. He also posted the Association's best mark in opponents' field-goal percentage (among players with at least 41 games this season), holding shooters to 43.1% from the floor. 2018 Rank: Not ranked, While Alexander-Arnold is one of the first names on the Liverpool team sheet, his relationship with England has been less straightforward. -- Mark Ogden, Country: England Position: Forward Manchester City have since signed Erling Haaland, who has proved to be the perfect foil for De Bruyne. He secured a high-profile move to Manchester City in the summer and has been in sublime form ever since. Check the progress of class of 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015. De Bruyne already has 15 assists and three goals to his name in 20 appearances in all competitions so far this season for the reigning Premier League champions.. Vinicius Junior is arguably the most improved player in the 2021-22 season. Club: Bayern Munich In the absence of an out-and-out striker in the 2021-22 season, De Bruyne's generous contribution in the goalscoring department helped City's cause massively. Stealing the show over in Italy, Osimhen has been instrumental to Napolis domestic dominance. Now out of the shadow that was an incredibly automated system under Pep Guardiola involving lots of squad rotation, Jesus has become the lynchpin for Arsenals glistening attack and given them a steel up front that has helped transform them into Premier League title contenders. The 2022-23 season is far from over just yet but is racing to a close across Europe, and its become abundantly clear who has stood out from the rest this season. FIFPro World 11. 5.4K. He's so incredibly powerful that it's as if he can't quite reign it in at times; he's a flat-track bully who can destroy smaller sides and yet even seasoned defenders can't deal with his movement sometimes. The Argentine-born Spain international won the second-ever Ballon d'Or and was so good that Pele called him the greatest striker of all-time. Chui Vng X N - Soi Nakhee (2023) Full HD Vietsub. Mbappe is thought to be the best young player in the game now, gracing the cover of the popular FIFA video game for the last two years. 2018 Rank: Not ranked, The Netherlands have plenty of talent in the squad, but no one is as important as De Jong in terms of how the Dutch will play. Age: 18 Age: 26 Fishlock continued to show the class and tenacity that have made her a fan favorite . Whether he's a forward, attacking midfielder or winger, we still don't know yet and yet his close control combined with his towering figure makes him difficult to defend against when he's in his pomp. Think of the best players in the world in 2022. Club: Barcelona All ages are as of the start of the tournament on Nov. 20. Ashley Roni, jr., Skyline (Washington) Roni was the key player in the biggest game of the year for one of the best teams in the nation in fall 2022. Position: Goalkeeper He prioritises the collective over any individual praise. Plenty of Real Madrid stars have sunk without a trace after being spat out to Italy yet Theo Hernandez has quietly become one of the best left-backs on Earth at AC Milan. He will turn 20 during the tournament and, as is increasingly the case at Barca, everything La Roja do is likely to run through him. -- Julien Laurens, Country: France Meanwhile, AustralianSam Kerrwon Best International Women's Soccer Player at the 2019 and 2022 ESPYS, marking her as one of the top in her sport. Position: Forward Kyle Bonn is a soccer content producer for The Sporting News. Age: 25 pic.twitter.com/wRsiWKYHqn, Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) April 15, 2023. in shunning bigger boys, he's carved out a career as one of the most intelligent and bewitching attackers of his time and he's still deadly, excellent to watch and beloved by fans. He's expected to play in his preferred right-back role despite regularly playing on the left at the Etihad Stadium. He has scored 18 goals and provided four assists in 22 appearances across all competitions for the Catalans so far this term. Football Top 100 footballers 2017:the best talents in the world. Those are the only goals he has scored for Portugal in 2022, though, and the debate about his importance to his country is beginning to grow in the buildup to Qatar. Position: Defender Pure ability is the most valuable currency to our list, while we've allowed some leeway, due to injuries or poor collective form of a club. No one is quite as slick when under immense pressure in tight spaces. -- Sam Marsden, Country: England Age: 22 He scored 19 goals and provided 14 assists in 45 appearances in all competitions for Pep Guardiola's side last term. Now one of Real Madrid's key attacking players, he is consequently a star-in-waiting for Uruguay at this tournament. The fact he clocks in at seventh in the top 10 despite that, however, is testament to his frightening abilities when he is around for Real Madrid. Sebastian Salazar and Herculez Gomez take a look at which CONCACAF players make ESPN FC's World Cup rank. Their class is currently ranked fifth in the league behind Arkansas State, Appalachian State, Southern Miss and South Alabama, according to 247. The 5-foot-4 dynamo, nicknamed "the Ghanian Messi," scored 20 goals and had 14 assists this season. Editor's note: This story published before it was confirmed that Sadio Mane would miss the World Cup. Position: Midfielder We've considered a few things when conjuring our own definitive ranking of every one of the best footballers on Earth right now. 2018 Rank: 2. 2018 Rank: Not ranked, Tchouameni made his big move from AS Monaco to Real Madrid in the summer and is now set to anchor France's midfield in Qatar. The Manchester United forward's record-breaking career might finally be on the wane at the age of 37, but he remains a talismanic figure for Portugal ahead of his fifth appearance at a World Cup. It is likely to be his last one, so this marks his biggest opportunity to write his name in the competition's history books. The big Belgian's form will be vital for Real Madrid as they look to defend their La Liga and Champions League titles this season. This year's list is full of fresh faces, many young but some older, who now have their chance to demonstrate that they're the best that soccer has to offer. Of course not. Now, his task is to lead Poland out of the group stage for the first time since 1986. He benefits from the emergence of a highly promising generation of young attackers, which will take some of the load off his slender shoulders. The 100 best football players of all time. 2018 Rank: 49, Dembele was part of the France squad that won the World Cup in 2018, but he has made just seven appearances since. 2018 Rank: Not ranked, There is a feeling in Portugal that if they are to do well in Qatar, it will be because of players like Silva rather than Ronaldo. He is already an established part of the midfield, alongside club teammates Sergio Busquets and Pedri, and his intensity and work rate, not to mention his quality with the ball, will be important in Qatar. 2022 has been a great year for football fans. Slowly but surely the game evolved, and when there's a jarring transformation -- like a winter World Cup -- it can feel like a revolution has happened overnight. Age: 30 Ratings: Stellar 8/10 Salah performance keeps Liverpool top-four hopes alive, Chelsea's resilience and work ethic have them competing for a treble, Arsenal flop reignites Premier League title race, plus Bayern's issues run deeper than manager, Chelsea fans turn on Boehly as mess continues under Lampard, Who is that masked man?! The complainers have since been silenced, with Gavi among Spain's best players in each of his 12 caps so far. -- Tom Hamilton, Country: Spain 49K. Club: Manchester City He's been outstanding all season and one of the best playmakers in the world. Modric is easily one of the top footballers of 2022. Ngi M Ti - The Good Bad Mother (2023) Full HD Vietsub. One question mark is exactly what position he will adopt: He has tended to operate more centrally for his country than the right-wing role that has already brought him eight goals for Madrid this season. So he trained away from the public eye, and in February 2022 he returned to competitive football in the Premier League having signed a short-term deal with Brentford. To highlight exactly how sublime he has been since heading to Naples last summer is the nickname he has earned through the course of the season Kvaradona. Valverde? The 21-year-old has a habit of influencing big games for City and it's only a matter of time before he does the same for England. Messi, of course. Kvaratskhelia. Club: Inter Milan 2026; 2025; 2024; 2023; 2022; 2021; 2020; 2019; 2018; 2017; 2016; 2015 Lewandowski moved to Barcelona in the summer and has done a pretty solid job for his new club in the first half of the 2022-23 season. The man once thought to be Pele's successor in Brazil,Ronaldo Nazario, elevated himself amongst the all-time greats despite a series of knee injuries that served to cruelly cut short his career. B-But he plays in a farmers league!! The Belgium international won the 'Premier League Player of the Season' award last term for his exploits. 2018 Rank: Not ranked, There were complaints across Spain last year when Luis Enrique called up Gavi at the age of 17 after just six Barcelona appearances. That is likely the reason his 7.73 rating simply wasnt enough to take the cake. 177.4K. Position: Midfielder Should England sneak past Nigeria to land Palace star Eze? Les Rouges need the Ghana-born left-footer to make their team truly competitive. Age: 37 2018 Rank: Not ranked, The Manchester United midfielder has yet to play to his full potential for Portugal due to coach Fernando Santos often favouring Manchester City's Bernardo Silva in a floating role between the midfield and attack. Age: 36 FourFourTwo is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Club: Paris Saint-Germain Age: 31 While Bellingham cannot show his box-to-box qualities as much, his runs down the field are crucial for the Three Lions to create chances. Age: 30 Age: 24 Big man Mitchell Saxen is the team's . Ranking the 10 best football players this year (2022) By Shambhu Ajith Modified Dec 27, 2022 12:58 IST Follow Us 43 Comments Lionel Messi (left), Karim Benzema and Kylian Mbappe (right). As good as he is which is absolutely unplayable in full stride its a little surprising to see De Bruyne rank higher than City team-mate Haaland this season, purely on the premise of how unbelievable the Norwegian has been. Position: Midfielder -- Constantin Eckner, Country: Serbia Anyone being compared to the late, great Diego Maradona is clearly doing something right, especially when doing it in front of the Napoli crowd every week. The Senegal international secured a move to Bayern Munich in the summer and has done a pretty decent job for the Bavarians so far this term, scoring 11 goals and providing four assists in 23 appearances in all competitions. The Barcelona midfielder was named the best young player at Euro 2020 and will be central to Spain's hopes in Qatar. The Bayern Munich forward is arguably Africa's leading player, edging out his old Liverpool teammate and Egypt star Mohamed Salah for that distinction, and Mane's performances for Senegal more than back up his claims to be regarded as his continent's most important player. Picking out the top 10 very best-performing footballers across Europe this season seems a straightforward task that wouldnt cause any kind of heated debate verging on argument, right? In 21 appearances across all competitions for Real Madrid so far this season, Vinicius has scored 10 goals and provided five assists. Skip Recommended articles and continue . -- Sam Marsden, Country: Argentina The majority of buildup plays go directly through him and Ilkay Gundogan. Position: Defender Napoli are running away with it in Serie A and look destined to lift their first Scudetto since 1989-90. He's heading to Qatar fit and in form. The veteran striker also helped Poland secure a berth at the 2022 FIFA World Cup. 2018 Rank: Not ranked, He's the heir to the great Argentina centre-forwards, taking up the mantle of Gabriel Batistuta, Sergio Aguero and Hernan Crespo. After moving to Paris Saint-Germain in the summer of 2021, Lionel Messi had a rather underwhelming debut campaign in the French capital by his own lofty standards. You should expect us in your inbox every Friday. Bukayo Saka was arguably the most impressive among England's players at the 2022 FIFA World Cup. 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