The English Premier League is obviously going to be dominated by players from both England and Europe as a whole, but this is a truly international league where players and fans from around the world come together. There is a great legacy of players outside of Europe in the Premier League like Didier Drogba and Sergio Aguero. Here are the best current Premier League stars from outside European nations who are starring for the top teams in the league’s Big Six.
Arsenal: Gabriel Magalhaes (Brazil)
This one was easy. Gabriel Magalhaes is the best center back in the Premier League right now, though Marc Guehi is awfully close, and it’s been about time that he received recognition for his quality from even the Premier League diehards.
With all due respect to William Saliba, Gabriel is cut from a different cloth. He is an absolute bulldog and a warrior at the heart of the defense, always putting his body on the line. I bet if you ask every top striker in the world, he is the center back they least want to face.
Chelsea: Joao Pedro (Brazil)
Choosing among Moises Caicedo, Joao Pedro, Enzo Fernandez, and Estevao Willian is just about unfair, and while I initially wanted to pick Caicedo since he’s such a dominant force in the defensive midfield, I do want to make my choice based on both this season’s performances and projecting overall value going forward.
Liam Rosenior seems to have unlocked something else out of Pedro entirely. His finishing is way underrated, his all around play as a center forward is brilliant, and now he is putting it all together at the age of 24 for Chelsea to become a striker solution they have not seen at Stamford Bridge in years.
Liverpool: Mohamed Salah (Egypt)
Even though he looks absolutely past it in terms of his dribbling ability, it is true what they say about class being permanent, and if you are crazy enough to doubt that about Mohamed Salah, then I suggest you watch the quality he still possesses technically.
Salah is the best he has ever been as a playmaker, still averaging two key passes per game even this difficult season with dysfunction around him. Notably, his top competitors for this spot, Alexis Mac Allister and Alisson Becker, have been even worse this season.
Manchester City: Antoine Semenyo (Ghana)
What Omar Marmoush did to Newcastle United in the recent FA Cup win for Manchester City is a slice of what the Egyptian star can do when he is at his best, but when you take into account overall play this season, it is impossible to deny the newest member of the Manchester City front line his due.
Ghanian international Antoine Semenyo was a legitimate Premier League Player of the Season candidate as the leader of an explosive Bournemouth counterattacking side, and he has already scored five goals in his first eight starts for Man City. You cannot deny that sort of production.
Manchester United: Matheus Cunha (Brazil)
Bryan Mbuemo has nine goals in his first season at Manchester United, Amad Diallo is mad underrated, Casemiro is still not finished, and Lisandro Martinez merits mention, too.
But for my money, the best of this group outside of Europe is Matheus Cunha when you look at his overall skill and technical quality, and he is the perfect heir to Bruno Fernandes in that No. 10 role. What he can do with a football is beyond what the rest of his teammates can do, Fernandes included.
Tottenham Hotspur: Cristian Romero (Argentina)
This one was really, really tough. I actually had Mohammed Kudus in there at first because of his overall importance to the Tottenham Hotspur attack, but how can you go against the captain and a two time Copa America and former World Cup winner?
Cristian Romero is one of the best center backs in the world and misunderstood, and it feels like stereotyping when people only talk about his aggression. The truth is he is a masterful player on the ball with his passing and ball carrying, and what makes his quality that much more important is the fact that he plays with a lot of players at Spurs who are overrated by the association of being his teammates and how he benefits them (Pedro Porro, Joao Palhinha, Rodrigo Bentancur, Micky van de Ven, and Guglielmo Vicario all come to mind here).
Joe Soriano is the editor of The Trivela Effect and a FanSided Hall of Famer who has covered world football since 2010. He’s led top digital communities like The Real Champs (Real Madrid) and has run sites covering Tottenham, Liverpool, Juventus, and Schalke. He also helped manage NFL Spin Zone and Daily DDT, covering the NFL and pro wrestling.