How Antonee Robinson became the best left-back in the Premier ...

When a left-back is able to contain Bukayo Saka and Mohamed Salah in consecutive Premier League matches, people take notice. When he pairs that performance against Liverpool with both assists in a 2-2 draw at Anfield, questions must be asked.

Antonee Robinson’s road to his current status among the first names on Marco Silva’s teamsheet has not been smooth. At Everton, there was a series of loans until they sold him to Wigan Athletic before he ever made a league appearance for his boyhood club.

There was the detected irregular heartbeat that nixed a January 2020 move to AC Milan (which, it should be said, no longer poses an issue to the 27-year-old). There was that spring’s relegation with Wigan, despite a breakthrough season in the Championship. Up until that point, there was also a very checkered performance log with the United States men’s national team.

At present, however, the boy from Milton Keynes has become arguably Fulham’s best player as the club sits ninth in the table after 16 matches. His form throughout 2024 has only emboldened his backers and brought another question to the fore: is Robinson the best left-back in the Premier League on current form?

The fact we can credibly pose this question is already a rarity for a United States international in the Premier League.

Even when their goalscoring exploits won London hearts, former Fulham pair Clint Dempsey and Brian McBride were seldom compared to Wayne Rooney, Didier Drogba and Dimitar Berbatov. Although John Harkes became the first American to score in a League Cup final in 1993, he wasn’t among the biggest draws in the new Premier League. 

The obvious precedent comes even deeper within defensive territory. Nearly a decade has passed since the proud litany of bald American goalkeepers ended with Tim Howard’s 2016 move to MLS, culminating a two-decade run that began when Brad Friedel joined Liverpool in 1997. 

Friedel made the PFA Team of the Year in 2002-03 with Blackburn Rovers, an honor that marks each season’s top goalkeeper. Howard won the same accolade in 2003-04, his only full season as Manchester United’s No 1. And while Friedel will never have to buy a drink around supporters of Blackburn, Aston Villa and Tottenham, and Howard is a modern cult hero at Everton, don’t forget Kasey Keller’s 201 Premier League games (mostly with Leicester and Tottenham) and Brad Guzan’s turn as Aston Villa’s player of the season in 2012-13. 

Nevertheless, it’s been two full decades since Friedel and Howard went back-to-back in the PFA Premier League Team of the Year (2002-03 and 2003-04 respectively). A goalkeeper is a specialist whose caliber is difficult to definitively size up with data or film, especially as the job description now carries greater variation based on a team’s approach in possession. To revisit the topic in a field position with serious two-way responsibility is a refreshing change of pace.

We’ll start by looking at the 14 players who have logged at least 750 Premier League minutes while playing left-back or left wing-back this season. At the top of the goal contributions chart sits Robinson, who has played six assists to his Fulham team-mates without scoring a goal of his own. No other qualifier has registered more than three combined goals and assists. 

In fact, only two players have contributed more assists than Robinson in the entire Premier League. Fittingly, it’s the two star wingers whose impact against Fulham was limited: Salah (11) and Saka (10). Not a bad place to start.

All six assists have come from open play, a testament to his crossing effectiveness against an established defense. The visual above showcases a clear trend in how often he’s sending in a late cross down the left flank.

Those eye-catching, lung-busting runs have become a prominent feature. Robinson has always been blessed with exceptional athleticism and fitness levels since he was a youngster being coached by his father, Tony, and his acceleration allows him to run beyond and away from his opponents.

This was demonstrated in his assists against Liverpool, both of which saw Robinson take his usual approach.

For the first, Robinson had plenty of ground to make up to overlap Iwobi. When he did, he ran past Trent Alexander-Arnold, taking advantage of the Liverpool defender’s poor body position, and delivered an inch-perfect cross to Andreas Pereira at the back post. 

Similar story on the second: after playing the initial pass, he sprinted past Alexander-Arnold again and continued his run. He then beat Jarell Quansah for pace, latched on to Iwobi’s pass and pulled the ball back for Rodrigo Muniz to score.

“A lot of my assists have come from low crosses, which is something we do a lot after training,” he told The Athletic earlier this year. “Just kind of feeding it into that danger area along the six-yard line.”

Noticeably, when compared to the chances he created last season, there has been an increase in the number that have come near the byline in the left channel.

While we have seen the role of full-backs change in recent years with the rise of the inverted full-back, Robinson remains from the traditional school. 

Silva has set up his side to provide cross after cross after cross and they have attempted the most open-play crosses in the league this season (272), completing more (61) than any other side.  

Robinson is averaging six open-play crosses per 100 touches, the highest rate of any full-back or wing-back in the league. Weighing a full-back’s involvement via touches rather than per 90 minutes helps compare players whose roles may vary greatly in different systems.

It is no surprise that he has become so integral to Fulham’s play in possession. Only Leicester (45.8 per cent) have created a higher proportion of their chances down their left than Fulham (40.9 per cent).

His 11.3 per cent share of all Fulham touches is the largest among his team-mates, with left centre-back Calvin Bassey (10.2%) and left-sided midfielder Alex Iwobi third (8.6%). Only two other left-backs in the league have over 10 per cent of their side’s touches: Newcastle’s Lewis Hall (11.3%) and Manchester City’s Josko Gvardiol (10.6%).

Robinson isn’t simply logging touches in less impactful spaces. He has been more involved further upfield than last season, seeing a near five per cent increase in his attacking-half touches compared to 2023-24.

Silva believes the biggest development strides Robinson has taken since the pair have been working together are his defensive attributes. 

“The way he’s been improving in our defensive process, some defensive setups, he’s always open-minded to learn and he’s been improving,” Silva told reporters after the Liverpool game earlier this month.

“But as well, playing against Salah, a lot of situations one-vs-one, the way he was brave, the way he was assertive and aggressive in the right way, with a yellow card from 25, 30 minutes into the game; even so, always really aggressive in a good way.”

Of the 30 full-backs who have played over 750 minutes, his 4.81 interceptions and blocked passes per 1,000 opponent touches ranks first, narrowly edging Destiny Udogie (4.79) and Fulham team-mate Kenny Tete (4.78).

‘True’ tackles are defined as total tackles won, divided by total tackles, challenges lost and fouls when attempting a tackle. Robinson’s 7.22 ‘true’ tackles per 1,000 opponent touches ranks ninth, with a 64.1 per cent ‘true’ tackle win rate showing both eagerness and effectiveness to challenge a dribbler. 

Robinson will have turned 28 by the time the 2025-26 season begins. Due to trending transfer policies of the elite sides — investing in young talent yet to reach their peak — the opportunity to make the move to a big club is shortening.

The defender signed a five-year contract last summer, so Fulham can demand a substantial fee for one of their main men. His current form begs suitors and his own manager Marco Silva knows it, believing he has the best left-back in the league. 

“You are asking a Fulham manager, but of course I am going to say yes,” Silva told reporters during his post-match press conference following the Liverpool match. 

“I don’t want to talk too much about him because I know in January, the same story is going to follow about Robinson. I don’t want to go in that direction. He’s really focused in the way he plays, so let’s keep him like that. It’s crucial for us. If he’s the best or not, that’s not for me to decide, my players are always the best.”

Antonee Robinson has 50 caps for the USMNT (Omar Vega/Getty Images)

Manchester City and Arsenal have commonly favoured operating with an inverted left-back, or by using a centre-back at left-back in recent seasons. 

Chelsea’s recruitment strategy has steered them away from signing anybody over the age of 25 — and Marc Cucurella’s resurgence has lessened their need for the left-back position. Tottenham addressed the position with the signing of Destiny Udogie. 

Left-back has long been a problem for Manchester United due to the injury problems of Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia. The appointment of Ruben Amorim and his 3-4-3 system does not require a left-back and the type of left wing-back — a role Robinson should theoretically have no problem adjusting to — the Portuguese manager would want is still not clear. 

Perhaps the most obvious need comes from his most recent ‘Big Six’ opponent.

The future of Liverpool’s left-back position is more uncertain due to Andy Robertson’s inconsistent form this season. While writing the Scotland international off is premature, the 30-year-old has been involved in a number of high-profile errors this season. His competition, Kostas Tsimikas, has never fully convinced those at Anfield, although Arne Slot has used him more frequently than his predecessor Jurgen Klopp. 

Robertson started against Tottenham on Sunday but struggled with Dejan Kulusevski in Liverpool’s 6-3 win. Two-and-a-half hours before that match kicked off, Robinson played another full 90 in a scoreless draw against Southampton, Fulham’s third clean sheet of the season. Liverpool’s transfer policy of targeting players before they reach their peak may work against Robinson, although any player who a club believes is an obvious upgrade must be seriously considered. 

Only time will tell if Robinson will involve himself more directly in a title chase in the coming weeks and months. His form has at least made that opportunity seem advisable from an on-field perspective. Such is life when one becomes the Premier League’s best all-round left-back

(Top photo: Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)