Bruno Fernandes heads the top 10 most tackle-proof Prem players… | OneFootball

If you stop Bruno Fernandes, you go a long way towards stopping Manchester United. But the stats prove how hard it is to subdue the Red Devils captain…

Here, thanks to football analysis experts Gradient Sports, we present the top 10 most tackle-resistant players in the Premier League.

Across a vast range of metrics, Gradient grades every player out of 100, measuring execution and outcome to offer the most insightful and accurate view of individual performance.

Here are the 10 highest-graded players for tackle resistance…

10) Thierno Barry (Everton) – 82.3

Ranking among centre-forwards: 2nd

Another industrious performance featuring another goal – his fourth in the last five games – while Leeds nibbled away at the Everton centre-forward sees the Frenchman break into the top 10.

9) Ezri Konsa (Aston Villa) – 82.8

Ranking among central defenders: 1st

Of all outfield players to play at least half their team’s minutes, seven players (all centre-backs) have won a higher percentage of the tackles they have faced than Konsa. But the Villa defender has faced more than double the number of tackles than any of those seven.

8) Richarlison (Tottenham Hotspur) 83.2

Ranking among centre-forwards: 1st

Highlighting what an awkward so-and-so Richarlison is to go up against, he is the highest-ranked centre-forward, with Barry and Chelsea’s Joao Pedro (12th) completing the top three.

7) Yeremy Pino (Crystal Palace) – 83.6

Ranking among wide/attacking midfielders: 1st

Coming from La Liga where he spent more time as an orthodox winger, you might have expected Pino to be crowded out as one of two 10s in Oliver Glasner’s system. But, as he told The Athletic earlier this season: “With technical quality, you can survive the pace of the game in England.” The numbers suggest he’s doing more than just ‘surviving’.

6) Moises Caicedo (Chelsea) – 83.8

Ranking among central midfielders: 6th

No midfielder has won a higher percentage of his 50/50s than Caicedo. Liam Rosenior just needs to figure out how to build his midfield around the Ecuadorian.

5) Bruno Guimaraes (Newcastle United) – 85.9

Ranking among central midfielders: 5th

The Brazilian midfielder has faced the fourth-highest number of tackles (168) this season, coming out on top of 71% of them. Newcastle cannot do without him.

4) John McGinn (Aston Villa) – 86.2

Ranking among central midfielders: 4th

It’s not easy to win a tackle when you have to get around an arse the size of a mini-roundabout, but McGinn is as wily as he is wide. No midfielder, attacking midfielder or wide player has performed above expectation on tackles faced more regularly, with McGinn just ahead of Morgan Rogers and Elliot Anderson.

3) Ryan Gravenberch (Liverpool) – 86.7

Ranking among central midfielders: 3rd

Despite some lack of clarity over what has been expected of Gravenberch this season, no midfielder has attempted more ball carries this season as the Netherlands star tries to drag Liverpool up the pitch. Four midfielders may have a higher carrying success rate but only Sander Berge (23) managed even a third of Gravenberch’s total carries (65) .

2) Joelinton (Newcastle United) – 87.4

Ranking among central midfielders: 2nd

Only Idrissa Gueye has won a higher percentage of the tackles he has faced than Joelinton, but the Newcastle midfielder has faced close to double the number of challenges of his Everton counterpart.

1) Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United) – 87.8

Ranking among central midfielders: 1st

Even if you take an approach of ‘stop Bruno, stop United’, it’s easier said than done. Fernandes may have played most of the season in a deeper role but even in an unfamiliar position, only four midfielders came out on top of a higher percentage of tackles faced, and none of them faced more tackles than the United skipper.