Like I said, it was tricky with Thiago. He has barely played in La Liga and even if I guess that ability-wise he is much much higher, I thought it was more appropriate to place him behind a couple of other young impressive technical players, two who have proved themselves over a season in either a top league or for a championship team, than with just six starts or whatever putting Thiago in the top 100.

And is it given for an example that he would already be a great success if you put him in Henderson's shoes at Sunderland?

Not even talking about the rainy days in Stoke but only that he still lacks a lot of experience and that while he already blow away (UK) players like those with his technical skills, there is also the physical side of the game to consider.

But yes, he will probably rise up the list for just about every game that he plays.

185 (Up 18)

Theo Walcott - England - Arsenal

Forward/Winger

Another (flawed) player who I always have a nightmare ranking. I would really like to see him for a different team than Arsenal to perhaps get a better idea. Or is it hope to have confirmed that his lack of dimensions would make him completely fall apart in many other places?

Well, to be fair while technically and mentally he can still be frustrating, I do think he press better these days, even if it may not be very effective, cause he is just too weak, but yes, generally without the ball he seems a little better.

he would be an awesome prospect in England or any other place, guys like him who seem to play the game in slow motion with an extra second to spare are rare and that is the quality that sold me on Cesc as a player when he was first starting to get game time with Arsenal.

Side by side on the same pitch, Thiago made the English guys look like plonkers. He is not impeccable yet, tactically he has flaws and he lacks humility and serenity of the latter Iniesta, but he's leagues above in class of other CMs his age.

184 (Up 75)

Kevin Nolan - England - Newcastle to West Ham?

Midfielder

Well he had a great season but probably some running good involved with the goals and I'm definitely not comfortable with the jump up, that seems a little too dependent on some other Premier League players that I felt he just had to be ahead.

That sometimes turn out to be, that they should all in fact have been lower...

Anyway, a very good allround season from Nolan contributing with something of everything. I liked both his ball distribution (including good decision making) and defensive work. Then there were the goals when he was marauding forward to put the icing on the cake.

Also, looks like the list will have its first Division One player in the next version. I'm not sure how I feel about that.


183 (Up 58)

Bruno Soriano - Spain -Villarreal

Central midfielder

I knew his central midfield play was very good. Especially when it comes to the technical side of things. That's why he entered the list in the first place, but his surprisingly high defensive stats ended up meaning a bigger jump than I had first imagined. He both press and tackle very well.

Then there is the high quality passing arsenal that he uses for very accurate distribution and his range is impressive as well.

182 (New)

Charlie Adam - Scotland - Blackpool

Central midfielder

I found my original Charlie Adam post in the EPL thread, from when I believe when we were discussing midseason teams of the year:

Well to be fair he isn't lazy and works hard until he gets tired but maybe not the most fit guy.

He would do well to improve in that department, especially to make it at at a bigger club.

So far he is all about his magical left foot where he can do just about anything he pleases (pleasing everyone watching) when it comes to ball control, kicking it or passing.

He also has legitimate flair even if it's something that can at times obscure his decision making.

181 (Up 25)

Juan Manuel Vargas - Peru - Fiorentina

Left Winger/Left back

From one great left-foot to the next. Vargas doesn't have the touch of Adam but can certainly kick the ball with great power, whether it's deliveries or shots on goal.

Had a horrible season last year but a nice little end of the season comeback moves him back up the list a little bit.

He definitely has the talent to go a lot higher, with intense pacy two-way play up and down the left-wing.

Agree its hard to rank Thiago but slightly with Zeestein on this one. I think you've not given him enough credit considering where some of the other players have gone. Despite his few appearances he is just so clearly above his position RIGHT NOW in ability I think you should have bumped him a minimum of 100 places if not a bit more, just to save on the juxtaposition of having so clearly inferior footballers ahead of him who have just a tiny bit more experience. Henderson being a prime example, we have example from just a few days ago of Thiago making him look like an amateur player. I am amazed Henderson is even near the list in general tbh.

Very cool though, I am thoroughly enjoying reading the list.

Some quick ones:

180 (Up 21)

Danny - Portugal - Zenit

Attacking midfielder

Brings team work and the abilities to both create and score goals.

Maybe a bit too high though?

179 (down 45)

Frederic Kanoute - Mali - Sevilla

Forward

He is on the way down and not getting better but still has one of the classiest combinations of athleticism and skill around.

178 (down 18)

Scott Parker - England - West Ham to?

Central midfielder

Very popular player who has enough technical skill, drive and work-rate to really thrive more than most in a high tempo Premier League game. On those occasions he'll be the best player on the pitch, go box to box running with the ball, passing it more nicely than the donks surrounding him and not least try tackle everyone in sight.

He will be a one-man army.

That's also kind of where my problem with him is. Defensively I'm not sure I can think of a player running more his own show with no regard for defensive positioning than Parker routinely did for West Ham.

He doesn't give a **** about tactics and looking back at previous moments in his career (and sometimes currently for England) when more restricted in his game it wasn't really the real Parker either. Just a much more ordinary midfielder when not running wild.

Thanks!

Until objections I'll continue with this method then, but time for another halt... Next time hopefully I'll do a big uninterrupted chunk of the list.

bump in hopes of more of the list

I have to say I'm a little surprised at Holden over Dempsey as far as American players. I would think that scoring 12 goals last season in the EPL (and twice as much as anyone else in his club) would be enough to consider him in the top 300 or so. I do realize it's not all about goals.. but just throwing it out there.

All right, early (way too early) Sunday morning it is, but that also means hopefully many uninterrupted hours ahead of doing the list, coming right up.

Well I did kinda manage to ignore him out of ALL the players in the 300-400 range that I also rank a good chunk of. Which was a mistake I think, but also one rooted in my impression of him being too limited when it comes to controlling or passing a football. But yes, impressive number of goals and definitely a player that contributes both ways.

But Holden to me seem a little more skilled and his work-rate, including defensive actions, was outstanding. FWIW among the best in the league there I suspect.

If he can keep that up, or if it was some run of fantastic form, I don't know. But time will tell that I guess. If he indeed can I like him staying in front of someone like Dempsey.

List so far:

300: Kevin Doyle - Ireland - Wolverhampton - NEW
299: Juan Manuel Iturbe - Argentina - FC Porto - NEW
298: Romelu Lukaku - Belgium - Anderlecht - Down 82
297: Daniel Sturridge - England - Chelsea - NEW
296: Andrés D'Alessandro - Argentina - Internacional - NEW

295: Maxi Rodriguez - Argentina - Liverpool - NEW
294: Salomon Kalou - Ivory Coast - Chelsea - Down 74
293: Chiek Tiote - Ivory Coast - Newcastle - NEW
292: Andres Guardado - Mexico - La Coruna - Down 98
291: Joey Barton - England - Newcastle - NEW
290: Youssuf Mulumbu - Congo - WBA - NEW

289: Thiago Alcântara - Spain - Barcelona - NEW
288: Christian Eriksen - Denmark - Ajax - NEW
287: Lewis Holtby - Germany - Mainz - Down 1
286: Tom Huddlestone - England - Tottenham - Down 139
285: Sebastian Giovinco - Italy - Parma - NEW
284: Eren Derdiyok - Switzerland - Bayer Leverkusen - Down 52

283: Royston Drenthe - Netherlands - Hercules/Real Madrid - Down 56

282: Rafael - Brazil - Manchester United - Down 77
281: Peter Odemwingie - Nigeria - WBA - NEW
280: Marcel Schmelzer - Germany - Dortmund - NEW

279: Diego Godin - Uruguay - Atletico Madrid - Down 49
278: Peter Crouch - England - Tottenham - Down 42
277: Miroslav Klose - Germany - Bayern München - Down 42

276: Walter Gargano - Uruguay - Napoli - Down 78
275: Anatolij Tymoshchuk - Ukraine - Bayern München - Down 52

274: Andy Carroll - England - Liverpool - Down 46
273: Gonzalo Rodríguez - Argentina - Villarreal - NEW

272: Neven Subotic - Serbia - Dortmund - NEW
271: Johan Elmander - Sweden - Bolton - NEW
270: Philippe Mexès - France - Roma to Milan - NEW

269: Antonio Reyes - Spain - Atletico Madrid - Up 7
268: Stuart Holden - USA - Bolton - NEW
267: Thiago Motta - Italy - Inter - NEW
266: Sven Bender - Germany - Dortmund - Up 28
265: Kim Källström - Sweden - Lyon - Up 14
264: Jorge Fucile - Uruguay - FC Porto - No change
263: Leighton Baines - England - Everton - NEW
262: Kevin Grosskreutz - Germany - Dortmund - NEW

261 Kevin Prince Boateng - Ghana - Milan - Up 11
260: Jimmy Briand - France - Lyon - Down 85

259: Marco Borriello - Italy - Roma - Down 45
258: Jose Manuel Jurado - Spain - Schalke 04 - Down 49

257: Domenico Criscito - Italy - Genoa - Up 20
256 Arda Turan - Turkey - Galatasaray - down 44
255: Park Chu Young - South Korea - Monaco - Up 26

254: Asamoah Gyan - Ghana - Sunderland - Down 72

253: Lee Chung Young - South Korea - Bolton - Down 15

252: Gonzalo Castro - Germany - Bayer Leverkusen - Up 44

251: Fabio Quagliarella - Italy - Juventus - Up 18
250: Bobby Zamora - England - Fullham - New

249: Gary Cahill - England - Bolton - New
248: Juan - Brazil - Roma - Up 27
247: Deco - Portugal - Fluminese - Up 2
246: Giovani dos Santos - Mexico - Tottenham - Up 1

245: Lukas Podolski - Germany - FC Köln - Up 44
244: Alvaro Arbeloa - Spain - Real Madrid - New
243: Andrea Cossu - Italy - Cagliari - Up 48
242: Moussa Sissoko - France - Toulose - No change
241: Gerrardo Torrado - Mexico - Cruz Azul - Up 48
240: Darijo Srna - Croatia - Shaktar Donetsk - Down 49

239: Diego Perotti - Argentina - Sevilla - Down 39
238: Jaroslav Plasil - Czech Republic - Bordeaux - Up 61

237: Renato Augosto - Brazil - Leverkusen - New
236: Juan Sebastian Veron-Argentina-Estudiantes- Up 10

235: Mathieu Valbuena - France - Marseille - Down 35

234: Antonio Nocerino - Italy - Palermo - New
233: Gabi - Spain - Zaragoza to Atletico Madrid - New

232: Landon Donovan - USA - LA Galaxy - Up 5
231: Zvjezdan Misimovic - Dynamo Moscov - Down 79

230: Yuri Zhirkov - Russia - Chelsea - Down 45

229: Alex - Brazil - Fenerbahce - New
228: Marcos Senna - Spain - Villarreal - Down 72
227: Steven Pienaar - South Africa - Tottenham - Down 94

226: Andre Pierre Gignac - France - Marseille - Down 13

225: Abou Diaby - France - Arsenal - Down 42
224: Alessandro Nesta - Italy - Milan - Down 13
223: Jeremy Toulalan - France - Lyon - Down 28
222: Alberto Gilardino - Italy - Fiorentina - Down 39
221: Bruno Alves - Portugal - Zenit - Down 3
220: Marvin Martin - France - Sochaux - New

219: Aaron Ramsey - Wales - Arsenal - New
218: Lucas - Brazil - Sao Paolo - New
217: Douglas Costa - Brazil - Shakhtar Donetsk - New

216: Ivan Rakitić - Croatia - Sevilla - Up 66
215: Mamadou Sakho - France - PSG - New
214: Adil Rami - France - Lille - New
213: Moussa Sow - Senegal - Lille - Up 49
212: Papiss Cisse - Senegal - Freiburg - Up 45
211: Roberto Soldado - Spain - Valencia - Up 62

210: Alexandr Kerzhakov - Russia - Zenit - Up 51
209: Oscar Cardozo - Paraguay - Benfica - Up 6
208: Roman Pavluchenko - Russia - Tottenham - Up 2

207: Jose Bosingwa - Portugal - Chelsea - Down 38
206: Luiz Gustavo - Brazil - Bayern München - Down 27

205: Josip Ilicic - Slovenia - Palermo - Up 4
204: Aaron Lennon - England - Tottenham - Down 107

203: Adam Johnson - England - Manchester City- Down 39
202: Charles N'Zogbia - France - Wigan - Down 26
201: Loic Remy - France - Marseille - Down 49
200: Michael Ballack - Germany - Leverkusen - Down 68

199: Alberto Aquilani -Italy -Liverpool/Juventus- Down 79
198: Anderson - Brazil - Manchester United - Down 80

197: Mamadou Niang - Senegal - Fenerbahce - Down 8

196: Humberto Suazo - Chile - Monterrey - Down 5
195: Bryan Ruiz - Costa Rica - Twente - Up 32
194: Shinji Kagawa - Japan - Dortmund - Down 61
193: Simao - Portugal - Besiktas - Down 72
192: Thomas Vermaelen - Belgium - Arsenal - Down 51

191: Francesco Totti - Italy - Roma - Down 3
190: Gareth Barry - England - Manchester City - Down 50

189: Jordan Henderson - England - Sunderland - Up 37
188: Lucas Leiva - Brazil - Liverpool - Down 6
187: Michael Dawson - England - Tottenham (NEW)
186: Alou Diarra - France - Bordeaux (Down 9)
185: Theo Walcott - England - Arsenal (Up 18)
184: Kevin Nolan - England - Newcastle (Up 75)
183: Bruno Soriano - Spain -Villarreal (Up 58)
182: Charlie Adam - Scotland - Blackpool (New)
181: Juan Manuel Vargas - Peru - Fiorentina (Up 25)
180: Danny - Portugal - Zenit - (Up 21)

179: Frederic Kanoute - Mali - Sevilla (Down 45)
178: Scott Parker - England - West Ham (Down 18)

Change title to top 300 players in european leagues imo.

177 (Up 19)

Darren Bent - England - Sunderland

Striker

Has not least the physical tools to consistently score in the strongest league in the world.

176 (New)

Balázs Dzsudzsák - Hungary - PSV to Football Club
Anzhi Makhachkala (!)

Winger

I was just starting to look for this dangerous weapon from the wing and off to Russia (and no doubt big money) he goes. That's a shame.

Really exciting player with skills, agile dribbling, deliveries and sick shooting all thanks to that left foot. Pace and work-rate. In other words just about everything you'd wish for coming from the wing.

Football Club Anzhi Makhachkala btw is a name that's starting to pop up here and there at the moment.

Roberto Carlos (yes THE ONE) is their captain and two time footballer of the year in Belgium, Mbark Boussoufa has also joined.

175 (Down 10)

Ze Roberto - Brazil - Hamburger SV

Midfielder/Winger/Fullback

Hamburg had a bad year and are looking to rebuild on what actually looked pretty good. Bad coaching choices helped them continue to underachieve I think.

Ze Roberto though had another consistently good year where his versatility again helped the team.

Remarkably he still has good athletic ability left and always had the skills. Then there is work-rate where he can do good defensive work and create goals for the team as well.

At 36 Hamburg apparently didn't offer him the years he wanted, and he'll be going elsewhere.

Brazil? That would be my guess.

Looking forward to the rest. This is an incredibly difficult project to do well--much harder than the American sports where all the talent is in one league.

Is Thierry Henry really no longer a top 300 player?

Well they do dominate for obvious reasons (what I watch and the overall quality of the leagues).

I have tried to include the very best from elsewhere though (though still not enough probably) but do feel free to come up with some good candidates.

Not sure how he is doing in the U.S actually?

I did put him in the top 100 on the original 200 list, even if he was starting to look washed up by then and I remember people rightly thinking he was too high cause it was going downhill quick for him.

The last time, I remember not being able to justify putting him ahead of almost anyone, even in the lower parts, and he really fell down. I think that and the combination of not being able to see him anymore made me remove him all together.

This time I didn't even think about him.

174 (Down 36)

Konstantin Zyryanov - Russia - Zenit

Midfielder

STILL my favorite Russian player and STILL on the list which is fair enough I think even if I'm not sure about where exactly his position should be.

I don't get to see him much and the years are advancing, but he was after all named Central midfielder of the year in Russia, which at least is a good sign.

Wonderful player who will provide expert teamwork from the wing or in the middle (not really deceptive Russian strong, well maybe he is now that I think about it, but there is definitely Russia-stamina) and he has the creativity, quality passing range, and dribbling skills to create goals.

173 (Down 34)

Goran Pandev - Macedonia - Inter

Attacking midfielder/Forward

At Inter he is purely a role player which rarely shines a positive light on his qualities. The kind of qualities that could make him something of an attacking talisman for lesser sides.

Good team-work and intelligence in the final third and technical skills to combine with teammates, set up goals or score himself.

172 (Up 81)

Yann M'Vila - France - Rennes

Defensive midfielder

Taking defensive midfield play to the next level or just another body in a long line of very good specialists. Or maybe even more of an all-round player than it has been my impression so far?

He is certainly impressive (looks almost unmatched) with his anticipation, reading of situations, and sheer range that he can cover putting in defensive operations.

Everything something which puts a bright light on both his tactical ability and his physical tools.

What he can actually do with the ball will decide how much further up the list he can go.

Neymar, Veron & Dalessandro are the obvious choices given that they are the top 3 of the southamerican player of the year award. I think Iturbe is getting way too much love, Im not even sure he was Cerro Porteño best player this season.

Im not expecting southamerica to have 100 players but 5 seems way too little love imo.

The thing is that most of the good guys are going to be in the deep world of brazilian football where every state has its own league and its ****ing impossible to keep track.

But for instance Santiago Silva from Velez Sarfield could get some love imo.

Yeah Iturbe was kind of special case. It would be nice to have him on already (even if that's prematurely) in case he starts to tear it up in Portugal in the coming season. I really do think that's something possible. Then I can write "Up" instead of "New" the next time around! And I like that for some reason.

These are the non-euro based entries so far with still a few more to come:

Iturbe
D'Alessandro
Deco
Torrado
Veron
Lucas
Suazo

So not exactly a lot unfortunately.

Sorry but if Iturbe is anything but argentinian he nevers make it into your list.
And now that we are discussing Argentina, Im surprised that you only have 1 argentinian league player.

Here is the top 11 from south America 2010.

Navarro
Reasco
Desabato
Victorino
Arevalo
Giulano
DAllesandro
Veron
Conca
Neymar
Silva

Some of them no longer play here.

171 (Down 72)

Ivica Olic - Croatia - Bayern München

Forward/Winger



He was injured all season and it's almost a matter of taste where you want to place him. Hopefully he comes back in great shape this season and has some good years left. Because what a player.

This is his original writeup:


170 (Down 103)

Marouane Chamakh - Marocco - Arsenal

Striker

Meh, pretty underwhelming first season in England for Chamakh.

Maybe I had too high hopes (his previous ranking would suggest so) but I seem to remember a real threat when following direct play he would attack the box without the ball and score with head or his feet.

This season he mostly looked really really slow. Did he put on too much muscle (weight) or something to try and adjust to the mighty Premier League?

Well, there was still some solid teamwork and his link-up play remains stellar with nice one touch passing and of course his aerial ability remains impressive.

169: (Down 61)

Ganso - Brazil - Santos

Attacking midfielder

Not sure where exactly to rank Ganso. Apparently he hasn't had the best of times since his break through. Or at least from when everyone really started talking about him as a next great player. There was of course the knee surgery where he has been out for months and I'm not really sure how he is doing since that.

But I decided not to dump him around 100 places and give credit for the incredible talent he has shown earlier. Great skills and playmaking at a very high level.

Then there is his size which I have hopes can really set him apart once he grows even stronger.

Zidane comparisons have not been uncommon.

168 (Down 41)

Klaas Jan Huntelaar - Netherlands - Schalke 04

Striker

Not a good season for goalscoring machine KJH and you're always surprised when he doesn't score (even) more goals.

But injuries played their part and if Schalke are at least half decent the coming season I expect him to battle for the top Torjäger spot.

167 (Up 72)

Stefan Kiessling - Germany - Bayer Leverkusen

Striker

Kiessling's jump up the list is a little misleading, since I moved him way down when he had suffered injuries and barely played around the same time the previous list was made.

This is more of his correct ranking I feel.

A very hard working off the ball and strong striker who is also pretty dynamic when attacking the box.