Rayan Cherki has been the Premier League’s star man this season, and Leeds United’s new signing James Trafford is making the case for England’s No.1 shirt, according to new analysis from BOYLE Sports using Opta data.
TRAFFORD: SIGNING OF THE SEASON SO FAR
James Trafford has quickly made himself Leeds United’s No.1 and he is now giving Thomas Tuchel something to think about. The goalkeeper has the best save percentage in the Premier League, stopping 18 of the 21 shots on target he has faced (85.7%).
That is better than England No.1 Jordan Pickford, whose save rate is 83.3%. It is also 12 percentage points better than Gianluigi Donnarumma’s 73.7%, the keeper who kept Trafford out of the Manchester City side.
Trafford has conceded just three goals in five games, which is the joint-fewest of any ever-present keeper in the league, level with Pickford. He has also kept two clean sheets. James Trafford is 50/1 to win the Golden Glove.
Goalkeeper | Save % | Goals Conceded |
James Trafford | 85.7% | 3 |
Jordan Pickford | 83.3% | 3 |
Gianluigi Donnarumma | 73.7% | 4 |
The challengers
Chelsea’s Morgan Rogers has been the pick of the outfield arrivals. The former Aston Villa man has three goals and one assist in his first five games at Stamford Bridge. He has created 11 chances, 10 of them from open play, and his expected assists of 1.24 is inside the league’s top 10. Morgan Rogers is 33/1 to finish the season with the most assists.
CHERKI: PLAYER OF THE SEASON SO FAR
Erling Haaland gets the headlines, but Rayan Cherki has been Manchester City’s main creative threat.
The Frenchman has three goals and two assists. His five goal involvements put him level with Haaland as City’s joint-top contributor, and only João Pedro and Pascal Groß have more across the league.
He is creating chances as well as scoring. Cherki’s expected assists of 1.54 is the second-highest in the Premier League, behind only Cody Gakpo. He has also created 12 chances, more than Cole Palmer and Martin Ødegaard.
Rayan Cherki is just 3/1 to finish as the Premier League’s top assist provider and an 8/1 shot to be crowned PFA Player of the Year.
Player | G+A | Chances Created | xA |
Rayan Cherki | 5 | 12 | 1.54 |
Cody Gakpo | 4 | 11 | 1.70 |
Bruno Fernandes | 4 | 13 | 1.32 |
The challengers
Cherki doesn’t have it all his own way. João Pedro and Pascal Groß lead the league with six goal involvements each, and Groß has also created more chances than anyone else, with 15 (12 of them from open play).
Liverpool’s Cody Gakpo tops the expected assists chart with 1.70. Bruno Fernandes has created 13 chances for Manchester United, while Haaland has five goals. João Pedro is 17/2 to finish as the Premier League’s top goalscorer.
