Indestructible rankings: most fielded players in 2020
No professional footballer has played as many minutes in official matches in the calendar year 2020 as Manchester United’s centre back Harry Maguire. Up until December 17th, the English international was fielded during 4’745 minutes (53 matches).
The top 100s for both goalkeepers and outfield players are available in issue number 318 of the CIES Football Observatory Weekly Post.
For outfield players, Maguire ranks ahead of Manchester City’s Rúben Dias and the Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi.
Other well-known footballers are high in the rankings such as Bruno Fernandes, Romelu Lukaku and Raphaël Varane.
If we consider the number of matches played, the Danish full international Christian Eriksen tops the table with 54 games.
However, in terms of minutes, the Inter player is not even in the first 1,000 ranks. On average, he played just over a half time per match.
With regard to goalkeepers, at the head of the table is Marcelo Lomba from SC Internacional: 4’740 minutes in 52 official matches. The Brazilians are over-represented in the top positions of the rankings.
Four goalkeepers playing for European clubs are in the top 10: Lukáš Hrádecký (Bayer Leverkusen and Finnish national team), Gianluigi Donnarumma (Milan AC and Italy), Jan Oblak (Atlético Madrid and Slovenia), as well as Manuel Neuer (Bayern Munich and Germany).
About the CIES Football Observatory
The CIES Football Observatory is a research group within the International Centre for Sports Studies (CIES). Created in 2005 by Dr. Raffaele Poli and Dr. Loïc Ravenel, the CIES Football Observatory currently comprises a staff of four full-time permanent researchers who specialise in the statistical analysis of football. Click here for more information.
About the CIES
The International Centre for Sports Studies (CIES) is an independent study centre located in Neuchâtel, Switzerland. It was created in 1995 as a joint venture between the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the University of Neuchâtel, the City and State of Neuchatel. Click here for more information. Click here for more information.
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