The Premier League’s best crossers revealed, as Antonio Valencia, Cedric Soares and Wayne Routledge sit near the top of the pile
We take a look at the top flight stars to create the most chances from the wing... and who does it with the most accuracy
FOOTBALL appears to be moving further and further away from the 'lump the ball to the big man' philosophy in favour of a quick-passing style of play.
That said, there will always be room for one thing: The good, old-fashioned cross.
Whether you're floating one in to test the goalkeeper's nerve or drilling one across the face of goal to spark panic amongst the defenders, the cross has always been and will always be a prominent feature of the game.
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But who are the Premier League's best crossers? We can reveal all, based on number of successful crosses and their accuracy, thanks to data from EA Sports.
Top of the pile sits Manchester United's flying winger-turned-full-back Antonio Valencia, with a superb 26 crosses completed through 2016-17 so far.
In the Premier League so far this term, the Ecuadorian veteran has completed one cross per 61.2 minutes, while doing so at an impressive 27.09 per cent accuracy rate.
In fact, only two players in the top handful can boast a higher success rate; Swansea's Wayne Routledge at 29.23 per cent and Southampton full-back Cedric Soares on 27.78.
Soares has mustered 20 completed crosses this season, while Routledge is one further back on 19.
However, are those three the best creators in the top flight?
After all, Manchester City's Kevin De Bruyne is streets ahead at the top of the assists chart on nine.
The Belgian superstar has completed a league second-highest 24 crosses at 23.32 per cent, to boot.
However, in terms of pure rate of getting a cross in, there's none better than Everton's former Crystal Palace winger Yannick Bolasie.
The DR Congo speedster has been out of action since the beginning of December through injury, however he has still mustered 19 crosses - at one per 54.1 minutes.
Only Soares and Eagles winger Andros Townsend come close to that at a cross per 55.1 and 59.8 minutes respectively.
Elsewhere on our top crossers list sit a pair of West Ham stars, wantaway wizard Dimitri Payet and England utility man Michail Antonio.
Frenchman Payet - currently plotting an escape to Marseille - has completed 19 crosses this season, with a 23.75 per cent accuracy at one per 79.6 minutes.
Antonio meanwhile has also completed 19 balls into the box, at a higher success rate of 26.03, but at a lower clip at just one per 90.9 minutes.
*Data Courtesy of EA SPORTS, the lead partner of the Premier League.
