Opta's Premier League Team of the Season
Statisticians Opta have compiled a Premier League team of the season based on extensive data collected throughout the campaign.
Below is their selected XI. Additionally, Troy Deeney's team of the year, which shares six players with Opta's selection, can be viewed separately.
For insights on Troy's Premier League team of the season, remarkable team performances, and Phil McNulty's season review, see the related links.
Goalkeeper
David Raya (Arsenal): Raya concluded the season with four clean sheets in Arsenal's final five matches, including a crucial save against West Ham, aiding the Gunners in securing their first league title since 2004.
He achieved 19 clean sheets in total, four more than any other Premier League goalkeeper this season, equalling the joint record for Arsenal goalkeepers in a single season alongside David Seaman's 19 clean sheets in 1993-94 and 1998-99.
Raya also became one of the few Spanish goalkeepers to earn a Premier League winners' medal, joining David de Gea (2012-13, Manchester United) and Adrian (2019-20, Liverpool).
World's best keeper? Raya helps Arsenal get back on track
Defenders
Matheus Nunes (Man City): Nunes had an outstanding season at full-back, starting 32 games and playing 2,865 minutes, surpassing his combined totals from his first two seasons at the club.
Manchester City won 66% of matches (21 wins, 8 draws, 3 losses) with Nunes in the starting lineup, compared to 33% (2 wins, 1 draw, 3 losses) without him.
He completed more passes in the opposition half than any other player (1,153), recorded the joint highest number of open play assists among full-backs (5), led in line-breaking passes (275), and completed the most passes in the final third (600). Additionally, he was the full-back with the most ball carries (514) and the greatest carry distance, exceeding 5,000 meters.
Gabriel (Arsenal): Arsenal central defender Gabriel Magalhaes finished the season with seven goal involvements (3 goals, 4 assists), surpassing players like Jorgen Strand Larsen (5) and Bernardo Silva (6), and matching Bournemouth striker Evanilson (7).
Six of these contributions came from set-pieces, where Gabriel was instrumental in Arsenal's record 19 corner goals in 2025-26.
Defensively, Gabriel excelled with 17 clean sheets, the highest among defenders despite missing eight starts.
Arsenal conceded only 20 goals in 2,751 minutes with Gabriel on the pitch, averaging one goal every 138 minutes, the best for an Arsenal defender playing over 2,000 minutes since Sol Campbell in 2003-04.
William Saliba (Arsenal): Partnering Gabriel, Saliba has formed a formidable central defensive duo, losing only 15 of 117 games together for Arsenal. The team concedes a goal every 44 minutes more frequently when they do not play together since 2022-23.
Saliba kept 15 clean sheets, second only to Gabriel's 17, and Arsenal conceded a goal every 131 minutes with him on the pitch, the second-best defender statistic this season.
On the ball, Saliba completed 92.9% of his passes, ranking third among players with 2,000 or more attempts. He averaged 67 passes per 90 minutes, with only his own previous seasons (69 in 2023-24 and 71 in 2024-25) surpassing this figure for Arsenal defenders since 2003-04.
Adrien Truffert (Bournemouth): Truffert was a constant threat down Bournemouth's left flank, making over 50 overlapping runs—the only player to do so in the Premier League this season—and ranking in the top five for underlapping runs.
He was one of three players to win possession over 100 times in the defensive third (105), and led full-backs in interceptions (48) and tackles (103).
Truffert also made the most progressive ball carries among full-backs (279), advancing the ball nearly two miles upfield, the second-highest carry distance for his position.
He was the only Bournemouth outfield player to start all 38 matches in their historic Premier League campaign.
Could this be the start of a period of dominance?
Midfielders
Declan Rice (Arsenal): Rice delivered another consistent season, playing 36 matches for the Premier League champions and maintaining a streak of at least 30 appearances in each of the last eight seasons.
His set-piece deliveries were pivotal, contributing to Arsenal's status as set-piece leaders in the Premier League. Rice recorded the highest expected assists from set-plays (3.3) and was second only to Bruno Fernandes in passes into the penalty area (258).
He achieved personal bests in chances created (63), set-play chances created (27), and big chances created (17), ranking behind only three players overall.
Rice also led central midfielders in ball-carry distance (7,460 meters) and carry progress up the pitch (3,660 meters), and was the only central midfielder to carry the ball over 100 times into the opposition half.
Elliot Anderson (Nottingham Forest): Despite Nottingham Forest's turbulent season with four permanent managers, Anderson provided stability, leading all players in touches (3,300), duels won (297), fouls won (80), and possession won overall (306), including 154 in the middle third and 127 in the defensive third.
Among central midfielders, he made the most line-breaking passes (376), completed the most passes (2,038), and recorded the highest number of dribbles (95).
He was the first player since Declan Rice in 2019-20 to win possession over 300 times and make more than 100 tackles in a Premier League season. His 297 duels won were the highest by an English midfielder since records began in 2006-07.
Out of possession, Anderson applied 1,895 high-intensity pressures, the most by a central midfielder.
Dominik Szoboszlai (Liverpool): Szoboszlai finished the season with four free-kick goals, the most ever by a Liverpool player in a single season and the highest in the Premier League for 2025-26.
He was second only to Bruno Fernandes in chances created (78), successful final third passes (660), and assists from set-play situations (5), while leading Liverpool players in successful crosses (69).
Szoboszlai also topped Liverpool in line-breaking passes in the final third (183) and possession won (187), demonstrating versatility by playing 26% of his time at right-back and 34% in attacking midfield.
'Shy' Anderson on England nerves and becoming a leader
Rayan Cherki (Man City): Cherki joined Manchester City after creating 11 goals for Lyon in Ligue 1 during 2024-25 and improved on that by assisting 12 Premier League goals in 2025-26.
He became the fifth player to record 12 or more assists in their first Premier League season, joining Eric Cantona (1992-93, 16), Andrew Cole (1993-94, 13), Juan Mata (2011-12, 13), and Dimitri Payet (2015-16, 12).
Despite starting only 19 games, Cherki averaged the most successful final-third passes (24) and highest expected assists (0.44) per 90 minutes, with only Bruno Fernandes creating more chances (4) than his 3.
Among players with over 1,500 minutes, only Ryan Giggs (2001-02), Kevin de Bruyne (2019-20), and Bruno Fernandes (2025-26) assisted goals more frequently than Cherki, who assisted every 149 minutes.
Forwards
Erling Haaland (Man City): Haaland secured the Premier League Golden Boot for the third time in four seasons, scoring 27 goals in 2025-26, five more than the previous season, with a 21.4% conversion rate.
He led all players in shots (126), shots on target (59), expected goals (26), and touches in the opposition box (213). Haaland also scored the most goals via ball carries (6) and recorded 10 match-winning goals, three more than any other player, matching his own record from 2022-23.
Additionally, only three players registered more assists than Haaland's eight this season.
Bruno Fernandes (Man Utd): Fernandes was an automatic selection, breaking the Premier League record for assists in a season with 21, surpassing Thierry Henry (20 in 2002-03) and Kevin De Bruyne (20 in 2019-20).
He created 136 chances, far exceeding the next best, Dominik Szoboszlai, who had 78. This represents the largest gap between the top two creative players in a Premier League season since 2003-04.
Only Mesut Ozil (146 chances in 2015-16) has created more chances in a single season in the big five European leagues, with Fernandes' total matching De Bruyne's 136 in 2019-20.
Fernandes led the league in open-play chances created (98), big chances created (33), expected assists (12.3), open-play expected assists (9.1), passes into the box (326), through balls (39), successful final third passes (662), and line-breaking passes in the final third (210). He was also fourth in shots attempted (85).
From Michael Carrick's first game on 17 January until the end of the season, Fernandes created 37 more chances than any other player (80) and his per 90 minutes total of 4.7 chances created under Carrick is the best ratio of any player under one manager on record since 2003-04.
