Cole Palmer has been ranked as Europe's second-best playmaker by football boffins in another endorsement of the Englishman's phenomenal talent. 

The Chelsea star has notched 19 assists since joining the Blues last summer and is developing a lethal partnership with Nicolas Jackson this season. 

Brainiacs at the CIES Football Observatory have painstakingly made a chance creation index, which combines assists, passes leading to a clear opportunity, and other factors to determine the best playmakers.

Palmer scores 94.3 on the index and among Europe's top five leagues he is beaten only by Paris Saint-Germain's Joao Neves, 20, the former Benfica youngster who had a host of clubs chasing him this summer. Given his score of 99.4, is to Arsenal's credit that they limited his influence in Tuesday night's 2-0 Champions League win.

Mohamed Salah is the only other Premier League star to creep into the top 10, coming in ninth with a score of 87.1 and making the case for a bumper contract at Liverpool despite being 32 years of age. He's already on four assists for the season. 

Arsenal's Bukayo Saka and Dwight McNeil of Everton round off the top 15 European creators, registering scores of 85.3 and 85.1.

Tottenham pair James Maddison and Heung Min-son and, perhaps to some surprise, Chelsea midfielder Moises Caicedo are not far behind. 

Lamine Yamal has been all the rage since his breathtaking performances in Spain's victorious Euro 2024 campaign and he ranks fourth despite being just 17 years old. 

Lesser-heralded name Romano Schmid from Werder Bremen sneaks into the top three while Villarreal's talented winger Alex Baena comes in fifth. Intriguingly, Werder Bremen are the only club with two players in the top 10 - their Mitchell Weiser also breaks in. 

And Liverpool fans may be left wondering what could have been with Iago Aspas, who never cracked the code at Anfield, placing sixth at the grand old age of 37 with his beloved Celta Vigo. 

In total, the CIES Football Observatory studied 65 leagues and Palmer ranks fourth in the world, with PSG's Neves first. 

Lionel Messi places second with a whopping 98.2 to prove he has still got it at Inter Miami. In 19 games this season, he has scored 17 and assisted 12 goals. 

Meanwhile, in a revelation that gives him eternal dressing room bragging rights, Inigo Vicente of Racing Santander in Spain's second tier pips Palmer to bronze with a score of 94.4.

All the same, this latest triumph for Palmer, streaks ahead of his Premier League rivals in the index, gives backing to his manager Enzo Maresca's claim that he is the 'best player' in the Premier League after he thumped four goals past Brighton at the weekend. 

'Goals, assists, best player of the Premier League, this doesn't change the way he is. He's a simple guy, a humble guy and this is, for me, the most important thing,' said Maresca. 

'Today in football, young players, they change very quick. They score one goal and they think they are already… you know. 

'Cole, he's scored many goals, many assists, he's a top player but he never changes and this is the most important thing.'