Great conversation starter, whatever the stats!

Rishi, woking, england

Had a closer examination of the mathematical analysis here. The top ten to fifteen of the leaderboard is statistically strong. Top 30 OK. Beyond that "mathematically a bit floppy". Very small differences make big differences in ranking lower down. I would still support this methodology for selection of top ten players. The clincher is that probably more importantly the top ten are the best on the field if you watch with a non-mathematical eye.
Interestingly, look at contribution. Flashy but non-contributing players (Fabregas who plays central sideways for Arsenal is a classical example) do worse than the team contributors.

Terry, Aquitaine, France

What a piece of junk! Can´t believe they actually printed it. A small glance and anyone should have been able to tell it´s a totally flawed model. Basically anyone in the top clubs will get good points and anyone in a bad team will get lousy scores no matter what... A statistical model that is applied to the whole of the premiership but actually only - and I even doubt that - might be intresting if applied to one team at a time?
Typhical for statistics - you can prove anything you want with it... Well here's a filosofical one for you. Get two buckets of water - one with really hot water and one with really cold, and put one foot in each of them. Statistically the temperature in the water is quite comfortable if put together - but you don't need to be told that to know your feet are wet...

Ded, Linköping, Sweden

this is total garbage...drogba 19th???
and ben foster who has been one of the best goalies 391???
this is total trash

Bob Wills, London,

Scientific? It's not fink just fick. How can Ben Foster be so low yet none of the back four at Watford appear below him? Or Robbie Keane who spent last than 50% of his time on the pitch yet still was the third best contributing forward? Would this be from the 50% of the time he was off the field?

Stephen N, Stoke-on-Trent,

The model must be flawed. It's still not as good as an 'eye-balll view.' Why is there so many goalkeepers in the top ten. Statistically it should only be one. When its three that proves the model wrong.

Jan, Oslo, Norway

Hleb is a brilliant player and i'm not an arsenal supporter.

Thomas Gibson, Warminster,

There must be an in-built bias in the methodology. Hence three goalkeepers and five midfielders in the top ten, but only one defender and one forward. With only one goalkeeper on the field per team, you would not expect three goalies in the top ten.

Peter Reed, Beckenham, Kent

Foster doesnt make a bad goalie either...

Sivaraman, Tokyo, Japan

Has anyone noted that the left and right backs for England's game with Brazil are none other than no. 396 (Nicky Shorey) and no. 397 (Phil Neville). Trouble?

Raplh, London,

which english premiership league did the writer of this statistics watch.

bamituni, port harcourt, nigeria

Mascherano a negative on the Liverpool team, me thinks the computer is having hot flushes!

Gerry, London,

I'm sure the numbers are an interesting theoretical exercise, but frankly common sense tells us they are meaningless.

To tak eon eplayer - Nicky Shorey. You rate him one of the every 'worst' players in the league. The very same Nicky Shorey was is now in the England squad, who has been widely acclaimed as one of the top newcomers to the league this season, who was runner up in his club's player of theyear vote, who those who watch him every week will confirm is a highly influential player in the Reading side.

I deeply distrust attempts to turn football into a 'statistical' game. It works for baseball and cricket but I fell your exercise confirms my belief that there is a whole dimension to football which defies attempts to turn into into 3 decimal places....

Martin Brailli, Reading,

Although they may make an interesting 5 min argument in the pub these statistics are absolutely meaningless.
Humans aren't robots for goodness sake!

And to translate it into a ranking system is just to get reactions like the one I'm currently giving.

I wonder how much it cost to accumulate all this useless data.

Michael Johnson, Glasgow, Scotland

Bentley,Foster,Shorey in the bottom 5!! These players were elevated to internationals!
This doesn't make any sense!

V, Watford,

David Bentley along with Benni McCarthy was Rovers' best player of this season. So how come McCarthy is near the top and Bentley almost at the bottom. Bentley will be a full England international soon make no mistake. There is something seriously flawed in the methodology.

paul, london,

The moment I saw Alexander Hleb's name in the Top 10, I realised this article was a wind up!

Nige, London,

Statistics can lie is what i was taught at university, need i really say anymore?

marc smith, edinburgh, midlothian

Ben Foster one of the worst keepers?

LW, London,

Ranking's useless and that's proved by Jääskeläinen's position.

Jee maali, Punavuori,

How can David Bentley be one of the worst, he had a cracking season!!!!!

Sam, Coventry,

This shows the problems of trying to turn football into statistics. Most people who watch much football would say that David James or Brad Friedel were the best keepers this season (Cech and Given not playing enough games). Scholes is a far superior midfielder to Lampard, and Bentley and Davies (the lowest 2 ranked players in this analysis) have been very valuable to their teams during this season.

Ian Blanchard, St Albans, UK

Ricardo Carvalho is world's best defender.

Jose Costa, Luanda, Angola

and 92% are useless

sasha, brentwood,

Daniel Finkelstein claims to have ranked "each and every Premiership player". If he can make a mistake about this, then equally his statistics can also have error. Although missing much of the season, the fantastic Joe Cole did play after getting over his injuries and he surely should not be omitted. Perhaps Daniel F can't actually count.......!

Dean, Cheltenham,

I swear that David Bentley is a midfielder. Perhaps more research needs doing.

Craig Haydock, Blackburn, Lancs

87.45% of all statistics are made up.

Jon Neathey, Middle Wallop, Hampshire