The Most Disappointing Players of the Premier League Season So Far

A new Premier League season represents a fresh start, and there was more time than usual for players to hit the ground running during the campaign’s opening act.

We were treated to a five-game burst before first international break of the season, with FIFA’s altered calendar combining the September and October windows into one, which leaves us without Premier League soccer until Oct. 10.

So now is the ideal time to reset and take stock of what we’ve enjoyed thus far.

While some have purred at an early juncture, others, including several high-profiles figures, are yet to find their groove. Such indifference is more concerning for some, especially those still keen to prove themselves on English soil.

Here are six biggest disappointments of the Premier League season so far.

Florian Wirtz

Jamie Carragher is pioneering the “WirtzOut” movement in the mainstream media. The Scouse pundit was at it again after another forgettable showing from the German at Bournemouth, saying that he doesn’t believe Wirtz “is in poor form; what we’re seeing is what he is.”

Now, of course, that’s pretty scathing, even if Carragher has tried to dress it up in a way that doesn’t appear too harsh.

Liverpool supporters were hopeful that their €117.5 million ($133 million) arrival from last summer would come good in his sophomore year, with Arne Slot’s tumultuous second season potentially the primary reason for the playmaker‘s acclimatization woes.

Wirtz recorded 17 goal contributions in all competitions last term, a modest-at-best return given how much Liverpool paid, and he’s started the 2026–27 season with just one assist to his name. Damningly, Wirtz just doesn’t boast the air of a superstar. Rarely does he take games over, or seek to grab them by the scruff of the neck. They often just pass him by.

Liverpool can only hope new Germany manager Jürgen Klopp can work his magic during the upcoming break, because Andoni Iraola hasn’t yet eked out the best of the former Bayer Leverkusen star.

Bryan Mbeumo

Manchester United are 12th in the table with five points and just one win to their name. They’re out of the Carabao Cup, too.

So, it’s fair to say that the start of Michael Carrick’s first full season at the helm hasn’t quite gone to plan. While Gary Neville’s tirade at the weekend seemed rather hyperbolic, there’s no doubting that several of United’s key men are underperforming.

Bruno Fernandes has struggled on either side of his Matchday 2 hat-trick against Ipswich Town, Matheus Cunha has been rather ineffective as United’s leading man in attack and the new midfield signings are yet to leave their mark.

You do wonder whether things would improve if Carrick returned Bryan Mbeumo to a center forward role in Benjamin Šeško’s absence. Cunha has instead been tasked with working in tandem with Fernandes, but the pair are yet to establish a coherent rapport.

That contrasts the connection Man Utd’s captain had with Mbeumo last season. Having these two working in close proximity was key in their upsurge under Carrick during the second half of last season, as the Cameroonian scored seven of his 11 Premier League goals while playing centrally.

Without Amad Diallo, Carrick has forced Mbeumo out wide, but his shortcomings in one-on-one situations have been evident at the start of the season. He’s completing just 0.6 dribbles per 90 minutes, per WhoScored.

He’s scored twice, including a brilliant goal at Everton, but needs to be constantly sniffing in and around the opposition’s box for the best version of Mbeumo to manifest. Perhaps Amad’s return from injury will spark a rethink.

Viktor Gyökeres

Viktor Gyökeres is a flat track bully, and that was okay during Arsenal’s title-winning campaign.

The Swede perhaps wasn’t the savior supporters thought he might be, but Gyökeres was serviceable during his debut season, scoring 14 times in the Premier League and another five in Europe. He lacked big goals, but did produce a bruising performance in the second leg of their Champions League semifinal victory over Atlético Madrid, perhaps his finest for the club.

There was a sense by the end of the season that Gyökeres was getting it, even if Kai Havertz remained first choice when he was fit.

It was a campaign to at least build upon, but through five weeks of 2026–27, Arsenal supporters are seemingly keen to see the back of him. Arteta remains unsold, limiting the striker to just 29 Premier League minutes. His inability to execute the most basic of actions has emerged as a rather comedic source of frustration.

He’ll enter October without a goal to his name, and his future with the club rather murky.

Sandro Tonali

There weren’t too many who thought Tottenham Hotspur had pulled off the bargain of the summer transfer window when they signed Newcastle United midfielder Sandro Tonali for £100 million ($133 million).

The Italian’s form dipped last season after an excellent 2024–25 campaign. While an excellent midfielder, there’s a particular functionality about Tonali that meant the fee Spurs paid looked a little bit lofty.

It’s fair to say that none of Spurs’ 10 new arrivals have pulled up any trees during the first five weeks of the season. Roberto De Zerbi’s side is woeful in both boxes, and sit bottom of the Premier League table as a result, having scored its first goals on Matchday 5.

Tonali can carry the ball over long distances and offer stellar protection in transition, but his limitations become clear when he’s not working alongside the right midfield profiles. So far, De Zerbi has fit a square peg in a round hole at the No. 10 position. Tonali desperately needs Mateus Fernandes alongside him in midfield, and James Maddison weaving his magic wand as their creator-in-chief.

Once that midfield configuration comes to the fore, Tonali should appear more comfortable. Still, there’s been little to suggest that the Italian was worthy of such a monster price tag. Players worth so much don’t require optimal conditions to thrive—they elevate those around them.

Emiliano Martínez

When Chelsea ditched Robert Sánchez for Emiliano Martínez, some said that it was the clearest sign the Blues were ready to "win now" at the start of Xabi Alonso’s reign.

Martínez has been one of the world‘s best goalkeepers this decade, playing an instrumental role in Argentina’s 2022 World Cup success and in Aston Villa’s rise under Unai Emery. But the Villans were right to move on when they did.

Villa’s Zion Suzuki is suddenly every hipster’s favorite goalkeeper, and Martínez has conceded 10 times in four Premier League appearances for the Blues. A porous out-of-possession structure hasn‘t helped Chelsea’s new goalkeeper, who leads the league with 4.5 saves per 90 minutes and only ranks behind five shot-stoppers with 0.2 goals prevented.

Statistically, Martínez has been fine, but he hasn’t been the immediate difference-maker so many thought he would be.

Dominic Solanke

As we’ve noted, Spurs have been terrible in both boxes. Ironically, De Zerbi has opted to shelve their best penalty-box operator, Richarlison, after he supposedly told the Spurs boss he wanted to leave at the start of preseason.

If that was the case, why did Spurs wait until the last week of the window to move him on?

The Brazilian remains on the club’s books, but De Zerbi hasn’t included him on his Premier League roster. So, Spurs are relying on Omar Marmoush and Dominic Solanke to emerge as reliable goalscorers until the winter window.

Unfortunately, Solanke looks miles off the pace. It’s been a torrid 2026 for the experienced center forward, whose Spurs career started promisingly but is trending in the wrong direction. His brittleness irked supporters last term, and the striker who started against Aston Villa on Saturday looked like he could do with a few weeks in the U-21s.

“His physical condition is not good enough," De Zerbi said after Spurs’ 3–2 defeat. "Maybe he is not good enough in the confidence at this moment, but many, many things can be better than this moment.”

The 29-year-old carried an ankle injury into the season, and Spurs desperately need him to return to a level at least comparable to his debut campaign after the break.

Add us as a preferred source on Google