Premier League's best midfield trios ranked by fans | OneFootball

Chelsea desperately needed to strengthen their midfield this summer after losing Mateo Kovačić, Mason Mount, N'Golo Kante and Kai Havertz. They have done just that by making some massive moves in the past week.

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The Blues had been linked with a move for Moises Caicedo all summer, but were struggling to get a deal over the line. They finally made the breakthrough and managed to beat Liverpool to his signature last week as the Ecuadorian joined for a British record £115m fee.

They are set to strengthen their midfield even further in the not-so-distant future in the shape of Romeo Lavia. The highly-rated teenager is close to joining the club in a £58m deal from Southampton.

Chelsea can now field a very strong midfield trio consisting of 2022 World Cup winner Enzo Fernandez, Caicedo and Lavia. But where do they rank among the best midfield trios in the Premier League?

Sky Bet, in partnership with YouGov, asked football fans to vote for the best first-choice midfield in England's top tier as part of their Fan Hope Survey for 2023. You can view the top eight below...

8 Brighton & Hove Albion: Mahmoud Dahoud, Pascal Gross, Joao Pedro - 1%

Brighton's midfield trio is much-changed in 2023/24 following the departures of Alexis Mac Allister to Liverpool and Caicedo to Chelsea. Roberto De Zerbi moved quickly to replace the duo, with Dahoud arriving for a free transfer from Borussia Dortmund and Pedro signing for a club record £30million fee from Watford. The trio impressed in the first game of the 2023/24 season as they starred in their 4-1 victory over Premier League newcomers, Luton Town. Pedro was particularly impressive as he netted a penalty on his debut, while Dahoud showed he could well be one of the signings of the summer as he produced a composed display.

7 Tottenham Hotspur: Yves Bissouma, Pierre-Emile Højbjerg, James Maddison - 4%

Joining Bissouma and Højbjerg in Tottenham's midfield this season is Maddison. Tottenham have lacked creativity in the middle of the park for many years but it seems they have finally solved that problem in the form of the 26-year-old, who joined in a £40m move from Leicester City this summer. The Englishman impressed on his Spurs debut, assisting both of his side's goals in their 2-2 draw against Brentford.

6 Chelsea: Enzo Fernandez, Moises Caicedo, Romeo Lavia - 4%

Despite costing £282m - and forming perhaps the most expensive midfield trio ever assembled - Chelsea's first-choice midfield attracted finished outside the top five with just 4% of the vote. That is despite Fernandez and Caicedo being among the best midfielders in the Premier League in 2022/23, while Lavia is considered one of the best young players in world football. The trio will only continue to get better in the coming years and could feature together for the next decade: Fernandez is just 22 years old, while Caicedo and Lavia are 21 and 19 respectively.

5 Liverpool: Alexis Mac Allister, Dominik Szoboszlai, Cody Gakpo - 8%

While this is Liverpool's first-choice midfield at the time the vote was conducted, it's not expected to be for too much longer. Gakpo, naturally a forward, was deployed alongside Mac Allister and Szoboszlai in their opening day draw against Chelsea but that is only due to their lack of options in the middle of the park. Liverpool are set to bolster their options in the coming days with Wataru Endo close to signing in a £15m move from Stuttgart. It's unlikely he will be the only arrival between now and the end of the transfer window, with the likes of Sofyan Amrabat, Ryan Gravenberch and Khéphren Thuram all linked.

4 Newcastle: Bruno Guimaraes, Sando Tonali, Joelinton - 9%

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Guimaraes and Joelinton were extremely important to Newcastle in the 2022/23 season as they secured a top four finish and a return to the Champions League. Keen to bolster the position even further this summer, Eddie Howe completed a €70 million move for Sando Tonali, making him the most expensive Italian player ever. The 23-year-old announced himself in style on his debut against Aston Villa as he scored the opener after just six minutes in his side's 5-1 victory.

3 Manchester United: Casemiro, Bruno Fernandes, Mason Mount - 10%

Casemiro and Bruno Fernandes have been world-class for many, many years and they are arguably Man United's two most important players. The former, now 31 years old, remains one of the best defensive midfielders in the world and played a huge role as United picked up the most clean sheets in the Premier League in the 2022/23 season. Fernandes, meanwhile, was appointed club captain in the summer and is United's main creative outlet. Fred, Christian Eriksen and Scott McTominay all did a decent job last campaign but Erik ten Hag made it his priority to sign a midfielder this summer, with Mount joining from Chelsea. The 24-year-old will be hoping to rediscover his best form at the Manchester giants.

2 Arsenal: Declan Rice, Martin Odegaard, Kai Havertz - 14%

Arsenal's midfield trio attracted 14% of the vote, finishing second. Odegaard was arguably one of the best players throughout the 2022/23 season, scoring 15 times and recording eight assists as they were just pipped to the title by Manchester City. Mikel Arteta has splashed the cash this summer with Rice and Havertz arriving from West Ham United and Havertz respectively. Rice has been one of the best midfielders in the league for years while Arteta is hoping to bring the best out of Havertz in an unfamiliar midfield role.

1 Manchester City: Rodri, Mateo Kovacic, Kevin De Bruyne - 50%

The overwhelming winners of the vote was Man City's midfield trio of Rodri, Kovacic and De Bruyne. They arguably have the world's best defensive midfielder in Rodri and the world's best attacking midfielder in De Bruyne. Losing Ilkay Gundogan on a free transfer to Barcelona was a big blow this summer and Kovacic, who signed in a £25m move from Chelsea, has been tasked with replacing him. City could well be without De Bruyne for the remainder of 2023, though. The Belgian has undergone surgery on a hamstring injury suffered on the first day of the campaign and is expected to miss four months of action.