Marked 8.05 across it, 5 goals and assists between them, and no serious argument from anybody else in the division. Tottenham have had the whole benefit of a month somebody else will spend the summer trying to buy.
The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Bournemouth people have started saying his name in the past tense.
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Manchester City, and it is not being withdrawn.
Scoring charts1 Oct 2029
Harry Gray is the month's best young player — 6.68
The award the rest of the division reads as a transfer rumour. 6.68 over the month and 1 goal contributions, from a Leeds United player whose price has just gone up without anybody at his club doing anything.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Everton is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
The fee was agreed and the flight was looked at — and then the phone stopped ringing. Cardiff City moved on, Tyrick Mitchell reports back to West Ham United, and everybody pretends Monday is just Monday.
3 assists, 8.05, and a Tottenham player who spent four weekends being the reason somebody else's name went in the paper. It is the least-rewarded skill in football and the easiest one to notice its absence.
Scoring charts1 Oct 2029
Highest marks in the league belong to a Tottenham man
Savinho averaged 8.05 over 5 appearances. Nothing about that will trend, and anybody who watched all four games would tell you it was the most accurate thing on this page.
4 in 5 for Nottingham Forest. Nobody outside his own ground is talking about him, which tends to be true of everybody on this list except the man at the top of it.
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. West Ham United have lost him in all but the paperwork.
“I listened, I thought about it, and I am staying. That is the whole story.” The clubs had agreed a fee. Konstantinos Mavropanos had not agreed to go, which turned out to be the part that mattered.
Scoring charts1 Sep 2029
Harry Gray is the month's best young player — 6.53
The award the rest of the division reads as a transfer rumour. 6.53 over the month and 0 goal contributions, from a Leeds United player whose price has just gone up without anybody at his club doing anything.
The offer from Liverpool for Mason Greenwood was heard out and sent back the same day. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loudly the door closes.
2 assists across the month from a Tottenham player marked 8.00. Somebody has to open the door before anybody walks through it, and nobody in the league opened more.
Scoring charts1 Sep 2029
Omar Marmoush is the division's best-marked player — 8.66
The chart that catches everybody a goal tally never will: the centre-half who was immense for four weekends, the holding midfielder nobody outside his own ground has heard of. 8.66 across 2 matches for Liverpool.
2 in 2 for Aston Villa. Nobody outside his own ground is talking about him, which tends to be true of everybody on this list except the man at the top of it.
Fee agreed, wages agreed, and Tottenham waiting with a shirt. Nobody at West Ham United is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.
“I listened, I thought about it, and I am staying. That is the whole story.” The clubs had agreed a fee. Evan Ferguson had not agreed to go, which turned out to be the part that mattered.
The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Brighton people have started saying his name in the past tense.
“I know what people will say. I know what I want, and it is here.” Porto had the fee agreed and the shirt ready; they did not have the player, and now they will not.
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Everton, and it is not being withdrawn.
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at West Ham United, and it is not being withdrawn.
2 assists, 8.60, and a Nottingham Forest player who spent four weekends being the reason somebody else's name went in the paper. It is the least-rewarded skill in football and the easiest one to notice its absence.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Manchester United is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
“I have ambitions, and I would like the club to share them.” Nobody has asked to leave and nobody has been shown the door — but a player chooses that sentence carefully, and a boardroom hears it exactly as it was meant.
The general version of this complaint is that a player wants more. The specific version names the thing: he wants to walk out under floodlights against clubs from other countries, and he has stopped pretending otherwise.
1 in 1 for Manchester City. Nobody outside his own ground is talking about him, which tends to be true of everybody on this list except the man at the top of it.
5 goals in 4 games, and nobody else in the league close to it. Fulham have the man every defence in the division is planning around.
Scoring charts1 May 2029
Mathys Tel is the division's player of the month — 8.20
A club's paper reports this as one of its own being honoured. On this page it is what it actually is: a verdict on everybody who played, and it went to a Fulham man on 8.20 with 7 goal contributions.
8.14 across the month and 5 goal contributions from a Bournemouth player everybody else in the division now has a file on. His price rose this month without anybody at his club lifting a finger.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Wolverhampton can pretend not to have heard.
Fee agreed, wages agreed, and Inter Turku waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Manchester United is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Brentford is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
3 assists, 7.96, and a West Ham United player who spent four weekends being the reason somebody else's name went in the paper. It is the least-rewarded skill in football and the easiest one to notice its absence.
“It was not right for me. I am not going to explain why to anybody except the people I owe an explanation to.” A deal agreed between two clubs, and a player who declined to be part of it.
Scoring charts1 May 2029
Highest marks in the league belong to a Arsenal man
Jérémy Doku averaged 8.21 over 3 appearances. Nothing about that will trend, and anybody who watched all four games would tell you it was the most accurate thing on this page.
The month closes with Savinho out in front — 7 goals in 5 games, and Tottenham have the division's most feared finisher.
Scoring charts1 Apr 2029
Savinho is the division's player of the month — 8.13
A club's paper reports this as one of its own being honoured. On this page it is what it actually is: a verdict on everybody who played, and it went to a Tottenham man on 8.13 with 9 goal contributions.
7.48 across the month and 2 goal contributions from a Liverpool player everybody else in the division now has a file on. His price rose this month without anybody at his club lifting a finger.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Wolverhampton they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
3 assists across the month from a Tottenham player marked 7.45. Somebody has to open the door before anybody walks through it, and nobody in the league opened more.
“I have ambitions, and I would like the club to share them.” Nobody has asked to leave and nobody has been shown the door — but a player chooses that sentence carefully, and a boardroom hears it exactly as it was meant.
It is the most legitimate ambition in the sport and the hardest for most clubs to satisfy. Julián Álvarez wants continental football; whether Chelsea can provide it is a question about the next two seasons, not about him.
Everybody in the division was measured and a Manchester City man came out on top: 8.26 across the month and 5 goal contributions. There is no serious case for anybody else.
7.69 across the month and 4 goal contributions from a Bournemouth player everybody else in the division now has a file on. His price rose this month without anybody at his club lifting a finger.
“It was not right for me. I am not going to explain why to anybody except the people I owe an explanation to.” A deal agreed between two clubs, and a player who declined to be part of it.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Bournemouth can pretend not to have heard.
Fee agreed, wages agreed, and Leicester City waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Chelsea is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.
The fee was agreed and the flight was looked at — and then the phone stopped ringing. Borussia Dortmund moved on, Bukayo Saka reports back to Arsenal, and everybody pretends Monday is just Monday.
The chart that decides who the scorers ought to be thanking. 2 of them made by a Aston Villa player marked 7.79, and not one will be in the montage at the end of the season.
Erling Haaland averaged 8.26 over 4 appearances. Nothing about that will trend, and anybody who watched all four games would tell you it was the most accurate thing on this page.
Marked 8.61 across it, 6 goals and assists between them, and no serious argument from anybody else in the division. Manchester City have had the whole benefit of a month somebody else will spend the summer trying to buy.
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Brentford have lost him in all but the paperwork.
“It was not right for me. I am not going to explain why to anybody except the people I owe an explanation to.” A deal agreed between two clubs, and a player who declined to be part of it.
The award the rest of the division reads as a transfer rumour. 7.33 over the month and 3 goal contributions, from a Bournemouth player whose price has just gone up without anybody at his club doing anything.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Brentford can pretend not to have heard.
3 assists, 7.69, and a Tottenham player who spent four weekends being the reason somebody else's name went in the paper. It is the least-rewarded skill in football and the easiest one to notice its absence.
Scoring charts1 Feb 2029
Erling Haaland is the division's best-marked player — 8.61
The chart that catches everybody a goal tally never will: the centre-half who was immense for four weekends, the holding midfielder nobody outside his own ground has heard of. 8.61 across 4 matches for Manchester City.
The month closes with Erling Haaland out in front — 6 goals in 5 games, and Manchester City have the division's most feared finisher.
Scoring charts1 Jan 2029
Erling Haaland is the division's player of the month — 8.47
A club's paper reports this as one of its own being honoured. On this page it is what it actually is: a verdict on everybody who played, and it went to a Manchester City man on 8.47 with 7 goal contributions.
7.21 across the month and 2 goal contributions from a Bournemouth player everybody else in the division now has a file on. His price rose this month without anybody at his club lifting a finger.
Fee agreed, wages agreed, and Tigre waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Nottingham Forest is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.
3 assists, 7.72, and a Arsenal player who spent four weekends being the reason somebody else's name went in the paper. It is the least-rewarded skill in football and the easiest one to notice its absence.
“I have ambitions, and I would like the club to share them.” Nobody has asked to leave and nobody has been shown the door — but a player chooses that sentence carefully, and a boardroom hears it exactly as it was meant.
Scoring charts1 Jan 2029
Erling Haaland is the division's best-marked player — 8.47
The chart that catches everybody a goal tally never will: the centre-half who was immense for four weekends, the holding midfielder nobody outside his own ground has heard of. 8.47 across 5 matches for Manchester City.
3 in 5 for Nottingham Forest. Nobody outside his own ground is talking about him, which tends to be true of everybody on this list except the man at the top of it.
Marked 7.81 across it, 2 goals and assists between them, and no serious argument from anybody else in the division. Crystal Palace have had the whole benefit of a month somebody else will spend the summer trying to buy.
The award the rest of the division reads as a transfer rumour. 7.57 over the month and 2 goal contributions, from a Bournemouth player whose price has just gone up without anybody at his club doing anything.
The chart that decides who the scorers ought to be thanking. 3 of them made by a Manchester City player marked 8.21, and not one will be in the montage at the end of the season.
“I want to be playing for trophies while my legs still let me.” Nothing in that sentence is a transfer request, and nobody at Chelsea heard it as anything else.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Everton they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
It is not a grievance and it is not a demand: he wants to play continental football, and he has stopped hiding it. Whether Chelsea can give him that is a question about the club, not about him.
The chart that catches everybody a goal tally never will: the centre-half who was immense for four weekends, the holding midfielder nobody outside his own ground has heard of. 8.21 across 3 matches for Manchester City.
2 in 3 for Manchester City. Nobody outside his own ground is talking about him, which tends to be true of everybody on this list except the man at the top of it.
Everybody in the division was measured and a Newcastle United man came out on top: 8.34 across the month and 9 goal contributions. There is no serious case for anybody else.
The award the rest of the division reads as a transfer rumour. 6.95 over the month and 0 goal contributions, from a Newcastle United player whose price has just gone up without anybody at his club doing anything.
The chart that decides who the scorers ought to be thanking. 5 of them made by a Newcastle United player marked 7.74, and not one will be in the montage at the end of the season.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Julio Soler will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Bournemouth the goodbyes have quietly begun.
“I have ambitions, and I would like the club to share them.” Nobody has asked to leave and nobody has been shown the door — but a player chooses that sentence carefully, and a boardroom hears it exactly as it was meant.
It is the most legitimate ambition in the sport and the hardest for most clubs to satisfy. Moisés Caicedo wants continental football; whether Chelsea can provide it is a question about the next two seasons, not about him.
Alejandro Garnacho averaged 8.34 over 4 appearances. Nothing about that will trend, and anybody who watched all four games would tell you it was the most accurate thing on this page.