Move aside Mohamed Salah, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo!
Take a hike Kevin De Bruyne, Neymar and Robert Lewandowski!
This space is dedicated to nine players who you may not have realised have torn up trees in Europe’s top five leagues this season.
You know, the underrated, unappreciated stars whose stats rival those of the headline-hoggers.
Before we get into it, you should know that you won’t find Roberto Firmino on this list.
Not because the Brazilian hasn’t been brilliant, but because he can hardly be called underrated when literally everyone on Earth thinks he’s amazing.
Got it? Good…
1 Luis Alberto
You’re probably vaguely aware that Lazio have dipped their toe into the world of ‘doing bits’ at times this season.
Circo Immobile and Sergej Milinkovic-Savic have lapped up the praise but how about some love for Luis Alberto?
Only Kevin De Bruyne has provided more league assists than the 25-year-old Spaniard this campaign.
Man City’s strawberry-blonde playmaker hasn’t reached double figures for goals like Alberto though.
The ex-Liverpool midfielder is one of only nine players with at least ten goals and at least ten assists to their name at the time of writing.
2 Florian Thauvin
Hold fire on the farmers chat.
Florian Thauvin has run riot in Ligue 1 this season and is genuinely in contention to start for France at the World Cup.
Marseille’s talisman has bagged 20 league goals and provided ten assists to boot.
Not bad for a Newcastle reject, eh?
3 Fabio Quagliarella
Some of you probably didn’t even know Fabio Quaglirella was still playing, let alone banging in goals for fun.
The 35-year-old has outscored Dries Mertens, Edin Dzeko and Gonzalo Higuain in the league up to this point.
The veteran Italian poacher’s 19-goal haul for Sampdoria has been one of the most enjoyable features of Serie A this season.
4 Son Heung-min
Okay, so maybe Son Heung-min is a bit like Firmino in that he’s been labelled ‘underrated’ so many times he’s now suitably rated.
Although a few non-Premier League followers may still be unaware of the South Korean’s excellence.
Son has been involved in 17 goals for Spurs in the league this season and has only started 26 games.
5 Iago Aspas
Who is going to lead the line for Spain at the World Cup? Diego Costa? Alvaro Morata?
How about Iago Aspas?
The tenacious Celta Vigo forward is joined by Messi, Ronaldo and Luis Suarez in the quartet of players to have scored 20+ goals in La Liga this season.
The Spanish public have largely been convinced of Aspas’ pedigree, but Premier League fans who only remember his joyless spell with Liverpool may think their eyes are deceiving them.
6 Nils Petersen
Be honest, how many of you knew Freiburg’s 29-year-man target man was the biggest threat to Robert Lewandowski’s Torjagerkanone crown?
Admittedly, Nils Petersen’s 15 goals is considerably shy of the prolific Polish poacher’s 29-goal tally, but he still deserves plenty of credit.
Petersen has scored exactly half of his club’s league goals this season with just one game left to play.
7 Karl Toko Ekambi
Get to know about one of Cameroon’s finest.
Nabil Fekir, Memphis Depay and Mario Balotelli have plundered goals in Ligue 1 this season to much fanfare but Karl Toko Ekambi has matched them all the way.
The 25-year-old Angers forward has scored 17 league goals and provided five assists to just about keep his club out of the relegation scrap.
8 Jose Callejon
Just as Firmino and Salah somewhat hog the limelight from Sadio Mane, more column inches are donated to Lorenzo Insigne and Dries Mertens than Jose Callejon.
Napoli may have fallen short in their quest to break Juventus’ stranglehold over Serie A but Maurizio Sarri’s men have played truly beautiful football this season.
Their front three of Insigne, Mertens and Callejon may not be the most physically imposing trio around but their fluidity and technical charm is impossible to resist.
9 Cristhian Stuani
19 La Liga goals? Where did that come from?
Last seen on English shores being generally ineffective for Middlesbrough, the Uruguayan striker has enjoyed himself in sunnier climes.
He may not offer much else, but there’s a lot to be said for a striker who provides the final touch.
Stuani is yet to provide a single assist in the league for a Girona team-mate this campaign but the bottom line is he’s scored as many goals as Antoine Griezmann.
All hail the unsung heroes!
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