Football News: Top 10 - British Left Mids/Wingers

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Top 10 British Left Midfielders/Wingers

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10. Callum Hudson-Odoi - Chelsea

Young and talented, though injuries held him back. Last season he had a chance to really push a claim to a first team place but never succeeded in nailing one down, which is why he is so far down the list.

9. Ademola Lookman - Fulham

An incredibly inconsistent but talented player. However he is not quite good enough to make a step up from a bottom half Premier League team. At least not yet. He needs to improve his consistency to move up.

8. Ryan Kent - Rangers

Hard work is its own reward they say and in Kent's case it is why he is in the list. Even on his off days he does put in the work to help the team and he has ability which is improving through work. The only problem he has is the quality of the opposition he faces most of the time is lacking.

7. Dwight McNeil - Burnley

One of the most overrated players I have seen, but that does not stop him from being a good one. However he is far from great and lacks any real skill, though his striking technique is very good. Another whose hard work for the team helps push him up the list.

6. Harvey Barnes - Leicester City

Fast and direct but lacks skill to really take players on and needs space to really be truly effective. In a counter attacking side like Leicester, he is excellent, but I doubt he would be of any use in a team like Man City, who are ball dominant.

5. Phil Foden - Manchester City

I know the potential is there, but so far he has yet to show what he can do against teams that have been at it. He was exceptional against tired teams that were being overrun by Man City's fresh players last season, but he needs to do that against the best teams in the big games, such as a Champions League final.

4. Jack Grealish - Aston Villa

I know pundits verbally masturbate over him every day but I am not a fan of Grealish. I can see there is a fantastic player in there but, every time I watch him, there are too many flaws in his game for my liking. His cheating annoys me, it is not just the diving, but the fact that he is actively fouling his opponent more often than he is being fouled before the dive. It is just a shame referees are clueless about the game or they would spot it. However that issue tends to stem from what, in my opinion, is his biggest flaw. The tendency to take too long on the ball and not play a pass that's on when it's on. Instead he takes too long to make a decision, takes some more touches and ends up in a blind alley so throws himself to the ground to win a free kick or, occasionally, does actually get fouled. It reminds me of Steve McManaman before he left Liverpool to join Real Madrid. If Grealish can learn to release the ball quickly more often, he will find that, when there are no better options on to pass to, defenders are not able to close him down so much as they will be looking to cover a potential pass. Maybe he just also needs a move, to stop him being the main man and become just one of the team. Right now though, it holds him back from being as effective as he potentially could be.

3. Jack Harrison - Manchester City

Again a lack of consistency holds him back as he was brilliant at times on loan with Leeds United, but other times he was awful. The good definitely outweighed the bad with him and it will be a big loss for Leeds if they do not have him in their side next season. Like all players working under Marcelo Bielsa, his workrate was immense, and even on a bad day he put in a shift and a half. If he had more than one season of Premier League football under his belt, he would be higher up the list.

2. Raheem Sterling - Manchester City

He is here purely on previous seasons' performances as his level dropped ridiculously last season and he would have been lucky to make the list based on that season. However, if he does not up his game in the next season, then he will not be anywhere near the top three. In fact, if he had not started last season well he would have dropped a few places anyway. But a few months can be a blip, so it is up to Sterling to show that he has not already lost his way.

1. Marcus Rashford - Manchester United

A back problem held him back at the end of last season and he really should have been sidelined to let it recover. Before that he showed that coming in off the left really suits him and that he was growing into a top class player. Like Harrison and Sterling, he has an advantage over Grealish in the shape of pace, something which can make a real difference and is why I feel Grealish would probably be better suited to playing in the middle. What really sets him apart is his goalscoring, Rashford is a genuine goal threat, more so than any of the others in this list.

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Written by Tris Burke June 26 2021 18:10:07