7 Best Players From the Relegated Premier League Clubs

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At the end of last season, I did a video on the 7 best players at the three relegated teams, which included the likes of Jonny Evans and Xherdan Shaqiri. That seven would probably make for a pretty interesting ‘where are they now’ video 12 months on, but today we wanted to do a similar video for players relegated in the 2018-19 season.

Cardiff City, Fulham and Huddersfield Town were the three teams relegated from the Premier League this season, and the latter two really went down with a whimper. This seven was a lot trickier to put together than last years, and I’ve tried to find a balance of including players based both on how good they are and how well they played this season.

Anyone who plays for one of the relegated clubs, even if they’re only on-loan or are out of contract in the summer, are eligible.

Here are our 7 best players from the relegated Premier League clubs:

7. Calum Chambers – Fulham

Calum Chambers of Fulham competes with Ruben Neves of Wolverhampton Wanderers during the Premier League match between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Fulham FC at Molineux on May 04, 2019 in…

It seems a little bizarre to include a defender from a team that conceded 81 goals in 38 Premier League games this season, making it the second most porous defence ever in a 38-game Premier League season. However, Calum Chambers is one of very few Fulham players who can hold their head high at the end of this season. The thrice-capped England international and former Southampton prospect has, at the very least, shown real application and desire at Craven Cottage this season, something you couldn’t say for all his team mates.

Sadly for Fulham, Chambers was only on-loan with the club this season, and he will return to his parent club Arsenal for the beginning of pre-season.

6. Harry Arter – Cardiff City

Another player who has shown terrific fight and determination on-loan at a relegated Premier League club this season, Harry Arter is a good egg, and it’s easy to see why he has enjoyed such success as a trusted member of Eddie Howe’s Bournemouth squads over the years. He spent this season on-loan at Cardiff, where he never stopped running and was a real bright spark in the Bluebirds midfield. Arter still has two years left on his current deal at Bournemouth, but it’s hard to see him breaking back into the Cherries first team plans. Cardiff fans will feel Arter did enough this season to get another Premier League move, but recent reports suggest Fulham could be leading the chase for his signature in the summer.

5. Ryan Babel – Fulham

Ryan Babel may only have spent half a season and played only 12 games for Fulham this season, but in that half season and those 12 games, one could make a very good argument for him being the Cottagers standout player. Babel scored 5 goals for the club, making him their third top scorer, including one against his former club Liverpool and a stunner against Cardiff. Even the arrival of Lionel Messi in January probably wouldn’t have kept Fulham in the Premier League, but Babel provided a real injection of attacking intent and energy, and most bottom half Premier League clubs could do a lot worse than signing him this summer.

4. Neil Etheridge – Cardiff City

4th May 2019, Cardiff City Stadium, Cardiff, Wales; EPL Premier League football, Cardiff City versus Crystal Palace; Michy Batshuayi of Crystal Palace battles on the floor with Neil…

The first player in this seven with a decent chance of still being at their current club at the start of next season, Neil Etheridge was recently named as Cardiff City’s Player of the Year. Etheridge was playing in League One only a few seasons ago, but his impressive performances helped keep Cardiff in a number of games this season. The Filipino international earnt rave reviews for his performances, which kept summer signing Alex Smithies out of the first team fold. Most Cardiff fans wouldn’t begrudge Etheridge a summer move if a Premier League club came calling, but they’d sure love it if he stuck around ahead of next season.

3. Ryan Sessegnon – Fulham

Undoubtedly the most valuable player in this seven, Ryan Sessegnon may not have set the world alight this season in the same way he did when Fulham won promotion last season, but he is still widely considered to be one of the hottest prospects in the English game. Laughably still only 18, although he will turn 19 in just a few days, Sessegnon has played 115 games for Fulham, during which time he has been a first class servant to the club. There will undoubtedly be a few teams sniffing this summer, but with Fulham likely to be seeking an enormous fee, it’s not an impossibility that Sessegnon could still be at Craven Cottage next season.

2. Victor Camarasa – Cardiff City

Victor Camarasa of Cardiff City and Ryan Sessegnon of Fulham clash during the Premier League match between Fulham FC and Cardiff City at Craven Cottage on April 27, 2019 in London, United…

As good as Neil Etheridge was, I think the most impressive player at Cardiff City this season has been Victor Camarasa. The on-loan Spanish midfielder was the club’s brightest spark in midfield, and he was named as Cardiff’s Players’ Player of the Year. Having played as a defensive midfielder at Real Betis last season, little was expected of Camarasa when he joined Cardiff on-loan in the summer. He’s ended up being their joint top scorer with 5 goals, and their leading assist provider with 4. At the age of 24, Camarasa will no doubt have priced himself out of a return to a Championship-bound Cardiff, but he could still be playing in the Premier League next season if someone could strike a deal with Betis.

1. Aleksandar Mitrović – Fulham

Serbian centre-forward Aleksandr Mitrovic scored 12 goals in 17 games in half a season with Fulham in the Championship, and one suspects he won’t get the chance to replicate those feats in the second tier next season. Having joined Fulham for an initial £22 and potential £27 million in the summer, Mitrovic was by far the most impressive of the Cottagers string of big money summer signings. His goals were always likely to be Fulham’s best chance of survival, but an incredibly leaky defence meant 11 goals in 36 games was nowhere near enough.

Mitrovic is big, aggressive and just a general handful. He’s the type of centre-forward who never gives defenders a moment’s rest, and the type they hate playing against. Still only 24, he’s every bit a Premier League centre-forward, and we’d be surprised if he isn’t back in the top flight next season.