After digging through the data and teaming up with designers to visualise the finished creation, OLBG can reveal exactly what the fans believe the perfect Premier League player would look like. A debate you might expect between friends making selections on a betting site in their bet builder bets.
Key Findings at a Glance
- Mo Salah provides the deadly left foot.
- Cristiano Ronaldo offers the right foot, finishing, pace, heading, dribbling… basically half the player.
- Kevin De Bruyne dominates the football IQ and passing categories.
- N’Golo Kanté delivers unmatched work rate and tackling.
- Fans want the player to joke like Peter Crouch and lead like peak Roy Keane.
- Didier Drogba gets the nod for sheer strength, while David Beckham remains the king of freekicks.
- The top three most important qualities overall? Finishing, passing, and ball control.
The Anatomy of the Perfect Premier League Footballer
Left Foot: Mo Salah
No shock here. Salah’s left peg has been terrorising Premier League defences for years - and fans want that magic baked straight into the ultimate player.
Right Foot, Finishing & Pace: Cristiano Ronaldo
CR7 didn’t just top a few categories… he practically swept the board.
Supporters handed him:
- Best right foot
- Best pace
- Best finishing
- Best heading
- Best dribbling
- Best ball control
Basically, if this player walked into training with anything other than Ronaldo's toolkit, fans would have a meltdown.
Football IQ & Passing: Kevin De Bruyne
The Manchester City maestro takes the crown for football intelligence and passing range.
Fans clearly trust KDB to run the show and who can blame them?
Work Rate & Tackling: N’Golo Kanté
Two words: everywhere. Always. The poll confirmed what most fans already know - Kanté’s engine and tackling remain unmatched.
Strength: Didier Drogba
Nearly one in ten voters said their dream player absolutely needs Drogba-level strength to bully defenders the old-fashioned way.
Sense of Humour: Peter Crouch
An essential category, obviously. Around 16% of fans insist the perfect baller must be as funny as Peter Crouch, now famed for his after-football career in punditry and podcasting.
Leadership: Roy Keane
Peak-era Roy Keane as captain? That’s the energy fans want driving this Frankenstein’s monster of a footballer.
Freekicks: David Beckham
Sir David bends his way into the mix thanks to 30% of fans still rating him as the deadliest free-kick taker the league has seen.
Why Ronaldo Still Dominates the Conversation
Despite being part of an era filled with legends - Gerrard, Lampard, Scholes, Henry - Ronaldo continues to tower above them in the eyes of supporters.
- 20% named him the best all-round Premier League player ever.
- 33% said the 2000s era, featuring Ronaldo at Manchester United, had the best quality players overall.
What Fans Think Today’s Stars Are Missing
When we asked fans what modern Premier League players lack compared to past legends, the answers hit pretty hard:
- 44% said loyalty to one club is the biggest missing trait.
- 35% pointed to humility and a consistent work ethic.
- A third said players today show less passion for the badge than previous generations.
Top 5 Attributes Fans Value Most in the Perfect Player
Finishing ability (56%)
Passing ability (49%)
Ball control (47%)
Pace (43%)
Football IQ (43%)
The Final Build
OLBG has worked with designers to bring all these ingredients together into one visual concept - the Premier League’s perfect hybrid superstar. Imagine having free bets available to use on picking this guy as a first goalscorer on your ticket!
