The English Premier League is renowned the world over as being the most competitive in the world. It is a league in which any team can beat any other on any given match day. Sure, there are surprise results on occasion, but to call them shocks would be overstating the mark. These so called surprise results happen with such frequency that they only serve to remind us how unpredictable the oldest league in the world can be. The phrase “anything could happen” literally applies to every single premier league game without any hint of exaggeration.
With so much on the line and so little between the teams, there are certain players in the league that are so fundamental to a team’s success that they could be deemed as irreplaceable. While every team may have a player that is irreplaceable, some are more irreplaceable than others. This article has been put together to shine a light on four players whose team’s performances depend on them so much that a long-term absence can throw the whole season into turmoil.
Jamie Vardy – Leicester City
Despite playing in the Conference North league for FC Halifax Town as recently as 2012, Jamie Vardy has been a revelation for Leicester City over the last six seasons, which is best illustrated by the fact that anyone looking for Premier League top goalscorer betting offers will have him at the forefront of their mind.
The reason he is so irreplaceable is not just because of his goal tally but also his game off the ball. His pace scares the living hell out of even the best defenders, which means that they drop deeper allowing for the entire Leicester City team to push forward. Without him, they are a completely different outfit.
Bruno Fernandes – Manchester United
The fact that Bruno Fernandes only arrived in the Premier League halfway through the 2019/20 season is what is the most shocking thing here. Since then, it is difficult to argue that any player in the entire league has been better than the Portuguese midfielder. In this time, he became the first Manchester United player to win back to back Premier League Player of the Month awards since Cristiano Ronaldo in the 2006/07 season.
Not since Eric Cantona has a player has such a transformative effect on a United team. If he stays at the club for the rest of his career and continues in this vein of form, he will surely go down as one of the best players in the club’s history.
Virgil Van Dijk – Liverpool
This one is plain and simple. Virgil Van Dijk is, without doubt, the best defender in the world. He is next to impossible to beat in a one-on-one situation, he organises the defence around with a commanding presence and is also a big threat from set pieces.
It is no surprise that the Kopites regularly sing his name on match days and his importance has been truly realised this season, which he has missed the majority of due to injury. Liverpool have looked a shadow of their former selves without the Dutch powerhouse leading by example.
Kevin De Bruyne – Manchester City
Having been Manchester City’s Player of the Season in three out of the five seasons he has been at the club, it is easy to see why he is irreplaceable. He is one of them footballers that is good at absolutely everything.
The biggest indicator of just how good he is, is that the players around him adapt their game to what they know only he can do. When De Bruyne is on the pitch, players make runs they otherwise wouldn’t because they know no one else can see the game in the way he does. Take the ability to unpick even the most organised defences out of City’s game, and they suddenly drop a level.
