HOW WE'VE WORKED IT OUT Sportsmail examined 10 playmakers from the Premier League and ranked them against each other using their statistics. We've looked at pass completion, pass completion in final third, goals scored, chances created and dribble success rate. And here's how the scoring works: If the player ranks first, he gets 10 points. If he ranks second, he gets nine points. Third? Eight points. And so on, until the person in last gets a single point for coming 10th. Advertisement

Eden Hazard, Santi Cazorla, David Silva? What about Raheem Sterling, Christian Eriksen and Juan Mata? The Barclays Premier League is packed full of brilliant playmakers.

How can you compare such diverse talents? Sportsmail has attempted to rank a subjective list of 10 advanced playmakers, the men who bob and weave close to the front lines and pick locks. It excludes a deep-lying genius like Cesc Fabregas, while rewarding the players who thrive in the most congested part of the pitch.

By using five key indicators – pass completion rate, pass completion rate in the final third of the pitch, goals scored, chances created and dribble success rate – we think we have found the best of the maestros.

The leader in each category will get 10, the backmarker will score 1 and the man with the most points out of 50 wins. It’s not a flawless science – some playmakers have had more game time than others - but it offers an interesting barometer of how these men compare when set against each other.

Midfield maestros: David Silva (left) and Santi Cazorla make the list - but who finishes higher?

THE KEY STATS - TOTAL 15/50 Chances created: 50 (5th out of the 10) Dribble completion: 47% (8th) Pass completion: 81% (10th) Pass completion in final third: 75% (10th) Goals: 4 (=7th) Advertisement

10th - Raheem Sterling

A wonderfully exciting talent who has not yet hit his fastest stride this season.

He has impressed in front of goal with four strikes and has five direct assists included in the 50 chances he has created.

Sterling brings thrills to a game and his dribble success rating is unfair, because even though he has only completed 47 per cent of his attempts, the fact remains he has tried 135 dribbles and succeeded many times.

Only Hazard looks to beat his man more often. Where Sterling is let down is his passing. His pass completion of 81 per cent is four down on the next lowest and his success rate in the final third is also the worst of this sample.

Dusan Tadic (left) scored the winner against Manchester United and helped Southampton beat Newcastle too

THE KEY STATS - TOTAL 21/50 Chances created: 26 (9th out of the 10) Dribble completion: 52% (5th) Pass completion: 85% (=7th) Pass completion in final third: 78% (=6th) Goals: 4 (=7th) Advertisement

9th - Bojan Krkic

When he was breaking youth-team records at Barcelona, not many expected him to truly flourish in Stoke.

But he is looking to be a quite brilliant player in Mark Hughes’s side. He has thrived behind Stoke’s frontline, scoring four goals, including the winner against Leicester at the weekend.

His pass completion is respectable, though Stoke’s style means he has actually attempted fewer passes than any other player in the sample. His dribbling is exciting and effective, but he has only created 26 chances this season.

Bojan Krkic has made 88 dribbles - ranked third best in the 10 - and he has created 26 chances for Stoke City

THE KEY STATS - TOTAL 25/50 Chances created: 17 (10th out of the 10) Dribble completion: 48% (=6th) Pass completion: 89% (=2nd) Pass completion in final third: 86% (2nd) Goals: 1 (10th) Advertisement

8th - Ross Barkley

Had his season badly delayed by a knee injury and was recently told to ‘relax’ by Roberto Martinez.

Plenty is expected of this excellent young talent, who is lagging some way behind his rivals in goals and created chances.

But his passing statistics are excellent – his passing in the final third is second only to Hazard, while he maintains a very high passing ratio all over the pitch.

More than half his dribbles don’t come off, but he tries more than most having attempted 96 this season, which is the third highest despite playing fewer minutes than anyone else on this list. He brings an excitement factor to a game.

Ross Barkley has made 96 dribbles for Everton - the second best out of the 10 - but has just one goal

THE KEY STATS - TOTAL 26/50 Chances created: 54 (3rd out of the 10th) Dribble completion: 48% (=6th) Pass completion: 86% (=5th) Pass completion in final third: 77% (8th) Goals: 4 (=7th) Advertisement

7th - Gylfi Sigurdsson

One of the signings of the summer.

He’s scored four goals, directly assisted eight (the most of players in this list) and has created 54 chances, which ranks fourth against these particular rivals.

A solid all-rounder who, like most here, takes an excellent free-kick. Surprisingly for a player in a passing-orientated side, his passing in the final third is a full 10 per cent less than Hazard.

Gylfi Sigurdsson has made 44 dribbles and has a pass completion rate of 77 per cent in the Premier League

THE KEY STATS - TOTAL 28/50 Chances created: 60 (1st out of the 10) Dribble completion: 40% (9th) Pass completion: 85% (=7th) Pass completion in final third: 78% (=6th) Goals: 5 (=4th) Advertisement

=4th - Stewart Downing

West Ham have been a major surprise in the league this season and much of that is because of Downing.

He can play out wide but has often been part of narrower systems this season.

He has proven himself a major threat and has reached five goals for only the fifth time in 14 Premier League seasons.

The 60 chances he has created is the most of any player on this list and he also has the best crossing figures.

Stewart Downing is arguably the most surprising top player of the season with 60 chances created

THE KEY STATS - TOTAL 28/50 Chances created: 52 (4th out of the 10) Dribble completion: 59% (4th) Pass completion: 84% (9th) Pass completion in final third: 76% (9th) Goals: 8 (=1st) Advertisement

=4th - Christian Eriksen

His passing statistics are good but look poor on a talented list such as this, but where the 22-year-old Dane really thrives is in front of goal, where he excels at creating chances and getting shots off.

His haul of eight goals is matched only by Hazard.

For all that, he is also part of Mauricio Pochettino’s pressing machine – his 34 tackles is best in the list.

Christian Eriksen runs away in celebration after scoring Tottenham's winner against Sunderland

THE KEY STATS - TOTAL 28/50 Chances created: 28 (8th out of the 10) Dribble completion: 36% (10th) Pass completion: 90% (1st) Pass completion in final third: 82% (4th) Goals: 5 (=4th) Advertisement

=4th - Juan Mata

His numbers paint a fairly accurate picture of a man who can score his share of goals and also passes better than anyone else on this list.

But the numbers also show that no one attempted fewer dribbles and no one succeeded with less of those attempts.

Surprisingly he has only created 28 chances this season, though he has played almost 500 minutes less than Hazard.

Juan Mata has an 82 per cent pass completion rate and has scored five goals for Manchester United

THE KEY STATS - TOTAL 34/50 Chances created: 40 (7th out of the 10) Dribble completion: 76% (1st) Pass completion: 86% (=5th) Pass completion in final third: 79% (5th) Goals: 6 (3rd) Advertisement

3rd David Silva

He didn’t have his best game against Arsenal and has managed fewer minutes on the pitch than all but Ross Barkley and Bojan on this list.

Yet he is a devastating talent.

His goals tally of six ranks third here, while outside of our key indicators he actually has the best goals to shots ratio (32 per cent) of the field.

Flattered a little by his very high dribbling success rate of 76 per cent, considering his total tally of 33 completed dribbles is better than only Juan Mata’s 25.

David Silva has scored six goals, made 33 dribbles and created 40 chances for the champions City

THE KEY STATS - TOTAL 38/50 Chances created: 49 (6th out of the 10) Dribble completion: 67% (2nd) Pass completion: 89% (=2nd) Pass completion in final third: 83% (3rd) Goals: 5 (=4th) Advertisement

2nd Santi Cazorla

The most two-footed player in the Premier League? It certainly seems that way, a delightful blur that is capable of gliding to his left or right to get through a crowd.

A fairly distant second to Hazard in this reckoning, though he has played roughly 250 minutes less than the Belgian, which might explain why he has created 10 fewer chances.

Numerically, the most complete playmaker behind Hazard.

Santi Cazorla put in a heroic performance for Arsenal as they beat Manchester City at the Etihad on Sunday

THE KEY STATS - TOTAL 45/50 Chances created: 59 (2nd out of the 10) Dribble completion: 61% (3rd) Pass completion: 89% (=2nd) Pass completion final third: 87% (1st) Goals: 8 (=1st) Advertisement

1st Eden Hazard

Unlike most in this list, he doesn’t take a central role as he is often coming in from the left, but what a magnificent player.

A creative genius with a balanced game. He has scored jointly the most goals (eight) of any of the playmakers in this group, but also has the highest pass completion rate for the final third of the pitch, where the gaps are minimal.

He is also by far the most prolific dribbler – his tally of 175 dribbles is 79 more than the next nearest and he has a dribble completion rate that stacks up well against his peers. He does not fall outside the top three in any of our key indicators. Fearless and effective – the best in this list.