Every club’s underrated and overrated player in the PL part 2

Welcome back to this series and we will be looking at the rest of the underrated or overrated players in the remaining clubs of the PL.

Liverpool: Diogo Jota and Naby Keita

These two choices are debatable, but out of all the players i could have picked I felt this duo are the most suited.

Jota is not exactly underrated, but has been a bit forgotten after the classic trio of Firmino, Salah and Mane have burst back to top form. Jota has still been playing fairly regularly, which just shows his importance to the team. Jota was first seen as an expensive blunder by Klopp, given that Traore and his other teammates apparently contributed more to the team than the Portuguese forward. However, Jota has proved all his haters wrong with superb goals and creative play. rest assured that he is the direct heir for Firmino and will lead the next generation of Liverpool stars.

Meanwhile Keita’s purchase was seen as a bargain, but now it’s fair to say that he hasn’t be worth that money by a mile. Injury-prone and slow, the midfielder’s only strong suit is his volleys. His passing is decent, but Thiago is already there for that, and he is far better. In the end, Keita has hardly been the midfielder we expected him to be.

Manchester City: Rodrigo and Zinchenko

this one will not sit well with City fans, but the most i can do is shrug and just explain these choices.

Man City’s midfield is STACKED, and in the midst of all football fans fawning over Bernardo Silva, KDB and Grealish, most seem to have forgotten Rodrigo. The former Atletico man will definitely feel a bit short-changed, given the fact that his own team’s fans prefer a 36-year-old Fernandinho to him. He has been a solid anchor whenever he has played, and he would have evolved into a world-class player had he stayed at Atletico or moved to a team like Juventus, who desperately need someone like him.

Meanwhile, I’m sorry but while Zinchenko is a nice guy, he isn’t up to Man City’s standards. The only reason he plays is because Mendy was horrible before he went to PRISON, and Cancelo lost a bit of form at the end of the season. However, now that Joao Cancelo has come back roaring, Zinchenko is no where NEAR challenging him. He’s a solid LB, does the job, but would be more suited to a West Ham or Newcastle United.

Manchester United: Cavani and Martial

Two forwards, with two very different careers. Both were generational talents as a teenager, but one went on to conquer France before becoming a fan favourite in England, while the other has the work rate of a tortoise. Let’s take a closer look at both of their stories.

Edinson Cavani has always been outshone by a teammate in his career, and sadly, has been cast aside once again after Ronaldo’s return. At Napoli, he was the star man but at PSG he was outshone by Ibrahmovic, then Neymar and then Mbappe. Then at Man United, just when he was putting some respect on the number 7 shirt, Ronaldo returns and takes it from him. He is still quite the poacher at 34, and still commits his all to press the back line and cause a lapse in attention. His movement is exceptional, and Solskjaer should use him better by reverting to a 3–4–1–2 or something similar to use both him and CR7 effectively.

Meanwhile, fans all over the world are confused over Martial. Is he good? Is he bad? Overrated? Or just misunderstood? Well, Other than that 19/20 season, he has been average at the least. That is not good enough for a forward Louis Van Gaal signed to lead United’s frontline for the next decade. He turns 26 soon, and has yet to show us his full potential. He would do far better in other leagues, and he’s on borrowed time at Manchester.

Newcastle United: Karl Darlow and Longstaff

Poor Karl Darlow. He was Newcastle’s number 1 for only a couple of games despite his superb performances, and now he’s injured when he could have taken the opportunity to finally wrestle the number one spot from Dubravka permanently. However, he is probably one of the more expendable players Newcastle can replace with a European football goalie, and it’s sad that he doesn’t get much recognition from fans or England for his top class skills.

Meanwhile, Sean Longstaff is yet another player whose career has been destroyed due to hype, and he isn’t getting any better. Like Darlow, he has good sell-on value, and could be easily cast aside for a top 6 standard midfielder like Bissouma. He has the potential, but he is no longer performing like he used to. He plays very lethargically, and his passing is no longer as accurate as it used to be. To conclude, don’t be surprised if ends up at Norwich or Bournemouth in the summer.

Norwich City: Normann and Krul

Speaking of Norwich, let’s take a look at their underrated and overrated players. This one was easier, given how bad Norwich have been. They have been exceptionally bad, and have made my prediction of them finishing fourteenth look utterly ridiculous. Well, I can’t get them all right.

Normann, a Norwegian midfield enforcer has been amazing at the centre of the park for Norwich despite their frequent losses . He has quick feet, good passing ability and has a decent tackle too. An all-round player who should be playing for a better team.

Meanwhile, Krul has endured a terrible time in the PL this season, conceding 23 goals in 9 matches, and looks past his best as a top goalie. He was an amazing shot-stopper during 19/20, performing phenomenally despite being relegated, but has slipped up this season. He still pulls out a save or two, but has become helpless in stopping the steady influx of goals opposition sides score against the Canaries.At this point, even Angus Gunn, the former Saints goalie who conceded NINE goals in a match would do better.Krul is a good GK, but clearly is playing too much.

Southampton: Armando Broja and Oriol Romeu

Picking the Southampton players were hard since Southampton fans are generally quite realistic, but in the end i decided that these two fit the bill the most.

I’ll admit, when the Saints first signed Broja, I laughed at their pathetic attempt to replace Ings. However, he has been in electric form lately, and has thrown mud at the faces of ALL those rival fans (including me) who thought he’d be yet another youngster rotting on a lower team’s bench. He’s even kept former Blackburn Rovers striker Adam Armstrong out of the team, who has been restricted to warming the bench. The man who was supposed to be Danny Ings REPLACEMENT, has been replaced by an 18-year-old. The irony.

Meanwhile, this selection is bound to raise some eyebrows but bear with me. Romeu is good, but has been a tad overhyped by Saints fans. Sure, he’s a solid midfielder, but is he really as good as the likes of Stuart Armstrong, who also warmed the bench this weekend? Wards-Prowse could certainly be the anchor for Southampton’s midfield on his own, but for some reason Hassenhuttl keeps sticking to 4–4–2 or 4–2–3–1, instead of taking a risk with a 4–3–3. All in all, solid midfielder with lots of energy, but hindering better players’ progress.

Spurs: Son and Moura

I’ll admit, these two choices are quite debatable, given that a lot of Spurs players potentially fall in this category. However, hear me out as I reason why I feel these two players fit the bill for underrated player and overrated player respectively.

Son Heung-Min has been world-class for 3 years now, but only since 20/21 have fans truly appreciated him. He was amazing in Spurs’ run to the CL final, but overshadowed by Kane, Moura and even LLORENTE. However, ever since winning that Puskas award for his goal against Burnley, Son has finally got his due credit. The recognition has also helped him thrive as a player, and now he’s even CARRYING Spurs with Kane mostly off form this season. He’s a phenomenal player with an amazing skill set: He can cross, shoot venomously, dribble and play all across the front four. He’s also paved the way for future Asian footballers, and is an icon across Asia for how well he’s done on the biggest stage in world football: the PL. Great player and icon with more to come.

Meanwhile, Lucas Moura has been hanging on to a first team spot mainly due to his dribbling. That’s all. This feels mean, but other than his mesmerising dribbling, he doesn’t have much. Sure, he can cross once in a while, and his passing is quite ok, but Spurs have other players who can do that too. For God’s Sake, Dele Alli can do that, but is slandered for not having “enough work ethic”. Moura has been at Spurs for too long despite having almost non-existent end product, and would do far better in Serie A or La Liga. Trust me.

Watford: Josh King and Ben Foster

These choices are unconventional to say the least, and perhaps the most controversial of the lot. However, hear me out, and you’ll see why I chose these two.

Josh King has been utterly trolled by the internet for his rapid decline since his failed move to boyhood club Manchester United, but has come back with a roar yesterday with a hat trick against former club Everton. His time at Everton was forgettable to say the least, and he has been reborn at Watford after Ranieri took over. The 5–0 loss to Liverpool was embarrassing, but King’s ruthlessness has helped Ranieri save face as they won against Rafael Benitez’s Everton 5–2. The Norwegian is a top striker, with great movement and instincts, and should blossom into a top striker once again at Watford given the right conditions.

Meanwhile, calling Ben Foster overrated breaks my heart, but is the truth. He’s a top goalie, no doubt, but like Krul, is a bit too old and past it to play a full season. Bachmann deservedly wrestled the first 11 spot from him last season, and will be outraged that he can’t even make the Watford team despite being Austria’s number one. Foster is a nice guy, good goalie, but really should be on the bench.

West Ham: Alphonse Areola and Lanzini

Alphonse Areola is criminally underrated. Really. He’s been a more than decent goalie, but has gone from first choice at PSG to warming the bench at WEST HAM. Jeez, Fabianski is 36. How long do you want to play him every game? He’s still got it, no doubt, but at his age playing all the games in one season will be too strenuous. The effects may not be seen now, but it could effect West Ham’s finish in the PL this season. Areola is a more than capable successor, and should start playing NOW. He also should join them permanently, before he joins Fulham on loan again. Going through inevitable relegation again will not be good for his self-esteem.

Manuel Lanzini will always be remembered for that last minute equaliser against Spurs, but to be honest, other than that, he hasn’t done much. Sure, he’s scored a couple of times, but he isn’t the big game player everyone thought he was. He also has the consistency of Mario Balotelli. Exceptional every 10 games, then back to doing virtually nothing for the next nine games. He has the talent, no doubt, but if only he had even half the work ethic of Soucek. He would do wonders if that happened.

Wolves: Marcal and Traore

Finally, we’re down to the last team. Wolves have been ‘revived’ after the international break, with Hwang Hee-Chan on fire for them. However, there has been one superb performer who hasn’t really be noticed, and that’s left wing-back Marcal. He has been consistently involved in creating chances as well as defensive play, and is perhaps the best wing-back Wolves have had since their return to the PL. He is certainly a wing-back up to top 6 standards, and is only at Wolves due to his age. He has been dominant on the left side of the pitch, and should continue to boss that left side for the rest of the season.

Meanwhile, we have seen flashes of the Adama Traore who impressed PL fans and Sent Wolves fans into a frenzy this season, but the Spaniard is yet to make much of an impact to this Wolves side. Hype has literally sidetracked his career, and he has gone from being linked to Barcelona and Real Madrid to being linked to Liverpool as a back-up for Salah. Sure, Liverpool are a top club, but for a player of his talent, to go there and spend his prime years on the bench would be such a waste. He has buckets of talent, but he needs to buck up and get back his form if he wants to get a shot at a big club.

That’s all for this article, and I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it. I particularly relished writing this one, since it happens to be my fifty-first story on Medium, which means I’ve crossed 50 Stories, an achievement I’m very proud of. it has been quite the experience, constantly thinking what to write and how to write it, but I’ve enjoyed writing so Many Different stories. I would like to thank Gautam Satish for introducing me to Medium, and Tommy for letting me be on Corner Kick, which has helped me expand my audience. Finally, I would like to thank all those who have continuously read my stories and have supported me. You have motivated me to keep writing articles, and I will always be grateful for your support and feedback. Rest assured that I will continue writing these articles for years to come, and till my next article, adios!