Under the radar: 3 underrated Premier League icons

 The Premier League in England has an extensive history spanning over three decades and while being relatively younger compared to some of the other major European leagues such as La Liga in Spain or Serie A in Italy, it has built a reputation as one of the most popular leagues in the world with some of the most recognizable players and clubs in the world as well. Many of these players have etched their names in the history books as some of not just greats in the league but also in football, such as the likes of Thierry Henry, Sergio Aguero, Wayne Rooney, just to name a few who have made an iconic impact for their clubs and for the league as a whole. And with its rich history the amount of individuals who have made their careers in the Premier League and have gone down as heroes are too many to count, be it as a significant game changer for football or even as a cult hero for their club or even as players that “the streets will never forget” that may have had a world class run even for just a few games, but left a lasting impact that will be remembered for years to come. These different categorizations are somewhat unique to the Premier League and show the value of this competition and what it means to football.

With the 2024/25 season set to start soon, in this piece we will look at some players that some may have forgotten. Not in the sense that they have faded from memories completely, but their contributions to their clubs to get them glory and to the league as a whole may have been undervalued or underappreciated, when on the contrary they should often be in the discussion as some of the best players to play in the illustrious competition.

1.   Gary Cahill

We start this list with an individual who embodies the role of a classical Premier League central defender, with a towering physique of 6’4’ and a commanding presence to lead the back line. Cahill has spent time at multiple clubs in the top flight such as Aston Villa, Bolton Wanderers and Crystal Palace, but the main club where he spent the prime of his career and won every competition was Chelsea. Cahill joined the London side in 2012, approaching the age of 27, and was seen as a secondary center half option for David Luiz and John Terry, but injuries gave Cahill a spotlight early on, as he started and won Chelsea’s maiden UEFA Champions League title in the final against Bayern Munich. Cahill’s role at the club became more prominent in 2014 when David Luiz departed Chelsea, and the center back received a regular starting place, given the opportunity to play a hand in the blues’ 2014/15 title win, which he further followed up with another title in 2016/17, a season where he became the club’s de facto captain as John Terry’s starts became more infrequent due to age and eventually Cahill took over as full time captain the following season after Terry’s departure, where he lifted the FA Cup as a leader, following that up with a Europa League title the in the 2018/19 season, after which he signed off from the club as his Chelsea contract expired and he completed a move to Crystal Palace, ending his time in west London on a high note.

In terms of numbers, Cahill unfortunately doesn’t really rank high among most lists due to issues with fitness and injuries hampering his appearances, however in the appearances he made Cahill has ranked high among defending statistics in the Premier League, particularly throughout the 2010s, with the 2016/17 title winning season possibly being seen as his prime as he appeared an incredible 37 times for Chelsea in the league that season and scored 6 goals, more than attacking teammate, Michy Batshuayi. Cahill may have had a very late rise to form, but he truly made sure to lead Chelsea at the best of his abilities through some of the club’s strongest years, and his legacy will surely be remembered by Blues’ fans for years to come.

2.      Joe Hart

Joe Hart is an interesting pick, as during his peak as the Manchester City shot stopper he was hailed by many as one of the best goalkeepers in the world. But as time has progressed, and Hart’s career saw a huge dip in progress, particularly due to just one bad fixture, many have seem to forget what a quality player he was for the Premier League. This one bad game was of course the infamous defeat against Iceland which England suffered in the UEFA Euro 2016 round of sixteen stage. Here Hart made massive blunders at the back, which led to Iceland scoring twice and securing a 2-1 victory over the Three Lions. This performance and earlier mistakes in the group stage against Russia and Wales was noted by the then new Manchester City manager, Pep Guardiola, who made the harsh decision to remove Hart from his plans for the club, after nearly a decade at the club. This led to his eventual decline in form, spending his final years as a sort of journeyman in the Premier League and eventually hanging up his boots with Scottish giants Celtic in 2024.

But before that infamous Euro 2016, who was Joe Hart? Well if memory has failed many of you, he was the Manchester City number 1 who won two Premier League titles and is tied with Chelsea and Premier League legend Petr Cech for the most golden glove awards in the competition with four, including winning it three seasons in a row from 2010/11 to 2012/13, and he secured all these accolades before the age 28. And despite the Manchester City takeover by the Abu Dhabi United group in 2008, which made them financially capable to bring in some of the best talents in the world, the sky blues stuck with Hart as their primary man between the sticks in the initial years of the takeover, and his heroics at the back also helped Manchester City secure their maiden Premier League title in 2012, a season where he secured 17 clean sheets and conceded just 29 times in all 38 appearances. So while Hart may have “peaked” a little early, and his decline may have overshadowed all his achievements, it definitely must not be forgotten how significant his contributions were to the foundation of the giants that Manchester City have become now in the Premier League and football globally.

 

3.Raheem Sterling

The player we are going to cap off the list with is also the only currently active player in the Premier League, and also just to remind the reader, he is only 29 years old, which show the significant impact he has been making in the Premier League for over a decade now. Sterling started off in the competition fresh faced at just 17 years old for Liverpool, later making his international debut for England in the same year, quickly becoming the talking point as one of the next biggest names in football, seen as an absolutely rapid winger with a low centre of gravity, with his dribbling abilities being compared to that of Lionel Messi (going back to the previous article). Sterling quickly became a key figure for Liverpool, where he was hailed as a local hero and eventually secured the prestigious Golden Boy award in 2014, for the best young talent in world football.

But his reputation with Merseyside club was tarnished overnight as after contract disputes, he joined Manchester City in 2015 for forty nine million pounds for a then record breaking fee for a teenager in football, as he was just 19 at the time of the move. Initially he was criticized and deemed for overrated due to his performances not living up to his transfer fee, but with the arrival of Pep Guardiola, Sterling’s form massively improved as he became an integral piece in Guardiola’s rotational system at Manchester City, scoring 18 times and assisting 11 in 33 appearances in Manchester City’s title winning centurion season in 2017/18. He followed up the season with an equally impressive performance in 2018/19 as he scored 17 goals and assisted 10 in 34 appearances and adding another Premier League title to his belt, where this time he also won the competitions young player of the year award, as he was just 24. Sterling had another couple of stellar years with the Sky Blues, becoming the primary attacking option for the club when Guardiola struggled with managing attacking options at the club. Sterling left Manchester city in 2022 for Chelsea after winning an incredible four Premier League titles, but the winger has been unable to replicate his form for the London side, and many have begun writing him off as just another “has been” in the Premier League. Even during his peak at Man City, Sterling numbers were being complimented due to Guardiola’s system and not due his personal abilities and attacking threat, despite Sterling having the highest number of goals and assists under Guardiola at Manchester City, and being the club’s second highest goal scorer in history, only behind his former strike partner Sergio Aguero. However, Sterling is not anywhere near the twilight years of his career as he is just approaching 30 later this year, and with a reputable club such as Chelsea, he still may have more steam in him to be the world class he was at Manchester City. Safe to say the Premier League may have not heard the last of Raheem Sterling.