The Premier League's fastest XI of current players

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By Luke Karlik

Published May 31, 2019

Speed is a devastating and necessary asset in the Premier League

Speed is an invaluable asset to modern footballers, not least in a competition as fast-paced as the Premier League.

While the quickest of the quick are still most commonly found dashing up and down the wings, gone are the days when such athleticism was a requisite exclusively for wide players.

Now, there isn’t a position on the pitch where slowcoaches won’t be easily exposed.

That’s because the style of play in the Premier League demands rapid transitions from defence to attack and vice versa.

So, with that in mind, here we look at the fastest XI playing in the English top-flight this season.

GK | Paulo Gazzaniga

With no real-life evidence available, Gazzaniga - the fastest Premier League goalkeeper on FIFA 19 with 65 sprint speed and 63 acceleration - is something of an automatic selection.

RB | Kyle Walker

Walker has been clocked running at 35.42 km/h, making him the joint-quickest Premier League defender on record since Opta began collecting top speeds during the 2013-14 campaign.

CB | Antonio Rudiger

Rudiger might appear clumsy at times, but the lanky German’s 35.19 km/h sprint during the 2017-18 Premier League season was the fourth-fastest measured.

CB | Terrence Kongolo

Similar to his partner in the centre of the back four, Kongolo belied his gangly build by running 34.85 km/h against Tottenham last term.

LB | Patrick van Aanholt

Level with Walker as the fastest recorded Premier League defender around, Van Aanholt hit 35.42 km/h during the 2017-18 season.

RM | Adama Traore

Despite somehow failing to crack the top ten speeds recorded in the Premier League, it’s no fluke that Traore is the fastest player in FIFA 19 with ratings of 97 acceleration and 96 sprint speed.

CM | N’Golo Kante

Kante is most well-known for his timing of the tackle and seemingly endless stamina, but the Chelsea midfielder is no slouch either, with a top speed of 34.56 km/h recorded in 2017.

CM | Moussa Sissoko

Sissoko - who famously burnt Ashley Cole during his time at Newcastle - boasts the sixth-quickest sprint ever documented in the Premier League with a personal best of 35.33 km/h.

LM | Leroy Sane

Somewhat unsurprisingly, Sane’s 35.48 km/h dash is the record for the quickest sprint in the Premier League since such data was first logged six years ago.

ST | Jamie Vardy

Vardy gets the silver medal behind his Manchester City counterpart with a personal best top speed of 35.44 km/h.

ST | Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang

Aubameyang - whose highest recorded speed in the Premier League stands at 34.75 km/h - has reportedly run faster than Usain Bolt did over the first 30 metres of his 100 metres world-record of 9.58 seconds.