Manchester City have two players on the opposite ends of the Premier League’s speed chart.
The English top flight is arguably the most physically demanding league in the world, and Ben Foster thinks that is a reason Kevin De Bruyne is no longer able to play in the Premier League with Man City or any other club.
Speed is a key factor for any team that wants to be successful in England, and City know this more than anyone, as many opponents struggled to deal with the pace of Kyle Walker for many years.
Man City still have one of the fastest players in the English top flight, but this season also showed that the Manchester club also have one of the slowest.
Photo by Neal Simpson/Sportsphoto/Allstar via Getty Images
Photo by Neal Simpson/Sportsphoto/Allstar via Getty Images
Bernardo Silva is the second-slowest player in the Premier League
Bernardo Silva is one of the most technically gifted players in the Premier League, and luckily for him, speed is not a major part of his game.
This season, the Portuguese star was the second-slowest player in the English top flight, with the BBC reporting that the midfielder’s highest sprint was clocked at just 18.72mph.
More Man City News
This was only second to Wolves’ Craig Dawson, who had a top speed of 18.42mph, with Tomas Soucek, Jannik Vestergaard, and Casemiro rounding off the top five.
Silva has struggled at Man City this season, and there is talk around his future heading into the summer, with Benfica showing interest in the Premier League midfielder.
The 30-year-old has been a major success at City ever since his £43m move from Monaco in 2017, and another Portuguese star may be on that path at the Etihad Stadium, as Matheus Nunes has been clocked as one of the fastest players in the Premier League.
Photo by Dan Istitene/Getty Images
Photo by Dan Istitene/Getty Images
Matheus Nunes is the Premier League’s second-fastest player
Man City signed Nunes from Wolves during the summer of 2023, intending to use the Portuguese star as a midfielder; however, Pep Guardiola has deployed the 26-year-old as a right-back for the majority of the second half of the 2024/25 campaign.
The reason for this has now become clear as the City star is now the second-fastest player in the Premier League with a top speed of 22.82mph, which is only behind the 23.07 set by Tottenham’s Micky van de Ven.
Player Club Speed
Micky van de Ven Tottenham 23.07mph
Matheus Nunes Man City 22.82mph
Anthony Elanga Nottingham Forest 22.78mph
Bryan Mbeumo Brentford 22.76mph
Carlos Forbs Wolves 22.72mph
The fastest Premier League players during the 2024/25 season
Man City are in the market for a right-back this summer, so it remains to be seen how Nunes will be used next season at the Etihad Stadium.
Guardiola is also keen to add several midfielders, which indicates that the Portuguese star’s minutes will be reduced throughout the 2025/26 campaign, despite the 26-year-old’s speed being a useful weapon to use against opponents.