Alan Shearer has named Arsenal’s £55m summer signing Ezri Konsa as the Premier League’s player of the season so far, and says the centre-back has been so good that hardly anyone has noticed William Saliba is missing.
The Premier League’s record goalscorer picked a defender over every forward in the division when he spoke to Betfair this week. He also named the club he thinks will push the Gunners hardest for the title, and it isn’t Liverpool, Chelsea or Manchester City.
It’s a big call, but the numbers back him up. Arsenal have won nine of their first 10 league games, lost one, and conceded only five goals with seven clean sheets. They go into the international break five points clear at the top.
What did Shearer say about Ezri Konsa?
Shearer didn’t hedge. He said: “I think the player of the season up to now has been Ezri Konsa.”
His reasoning was all about the gap Konsa was signed to fill. “I just think when you look at the performances of Arsenal defensively, and look at his performances defensively, we haven’t even really mentioned them missing William Saliba,” he said.
“The only time we’ve mentioned him is in the last two weeks and that’s because everyone is thinking how is he going to get back in because Konsa has been that good.”
Praise from a striker who made his name bullying centre-backs carries a bit of extra weight. It also comes after Konsa was shortlisted for the Premier League’s October player award, when Arsenal’s perfect October earned three nominations.
The numbers behind the praise
The 29-year-old England defender joined from Aston Villa in August, after seven years at Villa Park that ended with a Europa League winners’ medal. Since then he has missed just one game, featuring in nine of Arsenal’s 10 league matches.
He has chipped in at the other end too. His first Arsenal goal came in the 2-0 home win over Everton on 24 October, a header from a corner in the seventh minute.
| Ezri Konsa, Premier League 2026-27 (first 10 games) | Figure |
|---|---|
| League appearances | 9 of 10 |
| Interceptions | 9 (level with Gabriel Magalhaes and Declan Rice for the squad high) |
| Possession wins | 32 (Rice has 35) |
| Arsenal goals conceded | 5, with 7 clean sheets |
Three of those five goals came in one afternoon against Brighton, which makes the rest of the record even more striking.
So where does that leave Saliba?
Saliba came back from the World Cup with a back injury and hasn’t played for the first team this season. He got 45 minutes with the under-21s against Aston Villa last week, is working on his fitness during the break, and reports point to a return at Newcastle on Saturday 21 November.
Shearer isn’t the only one who thinks Arteta has a problem coming. Rio Ferdinand, speaking on his YouTube channel this week, called Konsa “an immovable object” and suggested he could play some games at right-back so that Saliba and Gabriel can both fit into the side.
Why Shearer thinks Brighton are the real threat
Shearer’s other big call was on the title race. “Brighton could be Arsenal’s main challenge to the title this season,” he said. “I think Liverpool are in transition. Chelsea, same thing. They still have plenty of work to do with those football clubs.”
“Brighton have been incredible. The football that they’re playing, I mean, in Europe too, whether that will hinder them the longer the season goes on I don’t know, but they’re managing really well at the minute,” he added. “I don’t think they’re going to go away. I think they’ll be around for the majority of the season.”
Brighton are second on 22 points, with seven wins from 10 games, 26 goals scored and only seven conceded. Manchester City are a point further back in third, which is why the gap at the top still looks so healthy for the leaders.
Is Ezri Konsa really the best player in the Premier League so far?
For us, Shearer has it right. Losing a centre-back of Saliba’s level should have cost Arsenal points, and instead they have the meanest defence in the league and a five-point lead. Konsa is the biggest reason why.
The interesting bit is what happens next. Arteta now has three centre-backs who all deserve to play, with Newcastle away and then Manchester City at the Emirates straight after the break. Ferdinand’s right-back idea is the neat answer on paper, but on this form we wouldn’t be the ones telling Konsa he’s moving.
