Revealed: The Premier League’s most-used players in 2024 with Declan Rice, Kai Havertz and Moises Caicedo inside the top 10… but which defender played more minutes than any other star?

Liverpool star Virgil van Dijk has been credited among the top 20 footballers for minutes played in world football in 2024, while accruing the most of any Premier League player as well.

In a study conducted by the CIES Football Observatory, the Dutchman, 33, was adjudged to have played 5,523 minutes across 64 matches for both club and country so far this calendar year, which is the most out of any Premier League star.

The report, which tracks players featuring in the top 66 leagues around the world, showcases those who have played the highest number of minutes from January 1 to December 15 this year.

Only senior appearances at club level have been considered by CIES, while international U23 and U21 matches have been included in the study.

Behind Van Dijk in first place – and fourth worldwide – was Arsenal‘s William Saliba, who racked up 5,264 minutes across 59 matches for the Gunners in 2024.

He was closely followed by Manchester United‘s Portuguese pair Bruno Fernandes and Diogo Dalot, who registered 5,151 and 5,025 minutes respectively over the last 12 months.

William Saliba was the second most-used footballer among Premier League players this year

United’s Bruno Fernandes (right) and Diogo Dalot (left) came in at third and fourth respectively

Meanwhile, Chelsea are certainly getting their money’s worth from £115million British record signing Moises Caicedo, given he rounded out the top five with 4,994 minutes to his name this calendar year.

Luis Diaz, perhaps surprisingly, was the sixth most used Premier League player in 2024 with 4,929 minutes for Liverpool and Colombia, finishing second behind Van Dijk among Anfield’s stars.

Arsenal duo Declan Rice and Kai Havertz were next with 4,914 and 4,805 minutes accrued respectively , having each played key roles for England and Germany at last summer’s European Championships too.

Manchester City, who have suffered a dismal run of form under Pep Guardiola of late, winning just once in 11 matches, claimed the next three players on the most-used list, with Erling Haaland (4,786), Josko Gvardiol (4,770) and Bernardo Silva (4,663) racking up the minutes. 

Manuel Akanji, Ruben Dias and Ilkay Gundogan, 34, also found their way into the top 20 in the Premier League for minutes played, perhaps highlighting the point that perhaps Guardiola’s current City team have simply run out of steam. 

In terms of minutes chalked up worldwide, the most used player in 2024 was Barcelona defender Jules Kounde, who was selected in 69 matches and chalked up a huge 5,872 minutes for both the Catalans and France’s national team.

The versatile 26-year-old defender accrued more than 250 minutes more than Fluminense’s Brazilian star Jhon Arias in second place, who registered 5,599 across 67 matches.

Real Madrid’s Federico Valverde was the only other footballer to play more than Van Dijk across the specified period, with 5,573 minutes recorded over 66 games.

Chelsea’s £115m star Moises Caicedo rounded out the top five with 4,994 minutes to his name

No player in world football chalked up more minutes than Barcelona defender Jules Kounde

Former Manchester City defender Nicolas Otamendi, 36, rounded out the top five with an impressive 5,549 minutes across 65 games, continuing to flourish late on in his career at Portuguese giants Benfica. 

Bayer Leverkusen’s Granit Xhaka, Feyenoord’s David Hancko, Corinthians’ Felix Torres, Leeds United’s Joe Rodon and Arsenal’s Saliba were also named inside the top 10 by CIES.

From the study, it was found that over 73 per cent of minutes were played domestically, with the remaining playing time spread almost equally between international club competitions like the Champions League and international tournaments such as the European Championships and Olympics. 

In total, six of the 20 players are aged 30 or over, while only three players younger than 25 (Saliba, 23; Rocha, 23; and David, 24) made the list.