Football writer Adrian Clarke takes a closer look at the players vying to win the Coca-Cola Golden Playmaker award, which is given to the Premier League player with the most assists.
The Coca-Cola Premier League Golden Playmaker prize is awarded to the player who produces the most assists in a top-flight season.
Since it debuted in 2017/18, we have only seen five different winners, with Kevin De Bruyne (three) and Mohamed Salah (two) the dominant forces.
Eden Hazard, Harry Kane and Ollie Watkins have also claimed this illustrious award, which was most recently won by Salah, who provided 18 assists in 2024/25.
Right now, Bruno Fernandes is red-hot favourite to become the latest Golden Playmaker winner, with 14 assists to his name, including seven in nine matches so far in 2026.
Only David Beckham has ever provided more assists for Man Utd in a single Premier League campaign, having set up 15 goals in 1999/00.
The record for the most Premier League assists in a season is 20 - a record jointly held by Thierry Henry (2002/03) and Kevin De Bruyne (2019/20) - and Fernandes still has nine matches to play this campaign.
Who are the in-form creators?
Jarrod Bowen and Adam Wharton have stepped up their creativity levels of late, each registering three assists in their last four appearances.
Wharton’s trio of assists all stemmed from perfectly weighted through-balls, with his classy double assist last time out inspiring Crystal Palace to a 3-1 away success at Tottenham Hotspur.
Bowen, who crossed low for Tomas Soucek to flick home against Manchester United in a 1-1 draw and forced the turnover that led to Crysencio Summerville’s winner at Fulham, has helped struggling West Ham United claim crucial points in their bid to escape relegation.
Most assists last five PL matches
| Player | Assists |
|---|---|
| Jarrod Bowen | 3 |
| Adam Wharton | 3 |
| Bruno Fernandes | 2 |
| Erling Haaland | 2 |
| Harry Wilson | 2 |
| El Hadji Malick Diouf | 2 |
| James Garner | 2 |
| Declan Rice | 2 |
| Hugo Ekitike | 2 |
| Rayan Ait-Nouri | 2 |
Bowen is one of six players who have assisted in back-to-back Premier League matches, joined on that list by Fernandes, Rayan Ait-Nouri, James Garner, Archie Gray and Igor Jesus.