58% of the Premier League’s matches have been played thus far this season, and the season’s elite players have begun to distance themselves from the rest of the pack. Amongst the season’s best players, Chelsea’s Diego Costa reigns supreme in the Most Valuable Offensive Players (MVOP) rankings. But Arsenal‘s Olivier Giroud has astonishingly been the player in the best form in the EPL as of late.
It will be difficult for any player to overcome the lead Costa has mounted. But it is not impossible. There are currently 3 players in the rankings that have been earning more points than Costa since he’s been leading. Along with Giroud, Tottenham’s Harry Kane and Man United’s Zlatan Ibrahimović have been on hotter streaks than Diego Costa over the past 6 matchdays. All three are in positions to potentially overcome Costa.
Kane and Ibrahimović were two players we mentioned in our last article as players to look out for. In particular, due to his performance late last season, Kane is our favorite candidate to dominate the league until the end of the season.
Giroud however, has been a pleasant surprise over the past few matchdays. Until Matchday 18, Giroud had not even started a match for Arsenal this season. Since Matchday 18, he has 4 goals and 2 assists while earning 7.15 of Arsenal’s 13 points (55%) over that span. His form has been impressive to say the least.
Of course, Olivier Giroud’s potential has never been in question. Time and time again, Giroud has had similar streaks throughout his previous 4 seasons at Arsenal. He had a streak of 7 goals in 9 matches last season, and another streak of 9 goals in 10 matches the season before that.
The issue with Giroud has been sustainability. If Giroud can keep his current performance going at a relatively similar pace, then Costa’s biggest threat will be Giroud.
The Most Valuable Starting Squad in the EPL
We determined the Most Valuable Starting Squad through Matchday 22 utilizing the most commonly used formation in the Premier League: 4-2-3-1 (excluding goalies).
Similar to the MVOP rankings, the same players are continuing to show up in the Most Valuable Starting Squad. Compared to the last squad, there has only been one change. Arsenal’s Lucas Koscielny made his return to the starting squad as one of the league’s most valuable offensive centre-backs.
Continue following us to see the latest rankings and starting squad after Matchday 24.
For more information on how we calculate the MVOP rankings, click here.
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