REVEALED: The Premier League's most shocking performances

With today being Halloween, WhoScored.com have produced an alternative ‘six of the best’ approach this week, instead focusing on the six most shocking individual performances in the Premier League this season. For the purpose of the article, the players included featured for more than 45 minutes in a top-flight English match this season and does not include individual substitute appearances. 

Maarten Stekelenburg - WhoScored rating 5.23 vs Burnley 

Following a man of the match outing in Everton’s 1-1 draw with Manchester City earlier this month, Maarten Stekelenburg showed why he will never be truly considered a top goalkeeper the following week with a disappointing showing in the Toffees’ 2-1 defeat at Burnley. The Clarets mustered just three shots on target, with Stekelenburg conceding two, one of which was classed as an error that led to a goal. 

In the loss the 34-year-old parried a Scott Arfield shot into the path of Sam Vokes for the Wales international to net the opener for the Clarets. Stekelenburg subsequently missed Everton’s 2-0 win over West Ham this past weekend due to injury, with Joel Robles filling in between the sticks as the club secured their first league win in five. It remains to be seen whether Stekelenburg will reclaim his starting spot upon his recovery, but such a disappointing showing last time out would hardly have sat well with Ronald Koeman 

Granit Xhaka - 5.23 vs Swansea 

Granit Xhaka’s arrival at Arsenal hinted at a change in style for the club, with the Swiss renowned for his direct passing approach. Xhaka, though, has made just four Premier League starts for the Gunners following his signing from Borussia Monchengladbach, that in part owing to his red card in the 3-2 win over Swansea earlier this month. The 24-year-old reinforced his statistically calculated WhoScored weakness of ‘discipline’ in the victory with a straight red card with 20 minutes remaining. 

It came after Xhaka had committed an error that led to a goal as he tried to dribble his way out of the defence before being robbed of possession by Gylfi Sigurdsson, who duly capitalised to fire past Petr Cech. Now available for Sunday’s North London derby, Xhaka has the chance to re-endear himself to the Gunners faithful following an outing that warranted a lowly WhoScored rating of just 5.23. 

Claudio Bravo - 5.03 vs Manchester United 

For a brief period, Claudio Bravo had the unwanted honour of earning the lowest WhoScored rating of goalkeepers in a single Premier League match this season - more on that later - as he started life in Manchester on a sour note. Granted, Manchester City earned a 2-1 win at Old Trafford in the fixture, but Bravo endured a debut of nightmares as he came close to single handedly throwing away his side’s lead against United. 

The Chilean was responsible for Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s goal in the dying embers of the first half, dropping Wayne Rooney’s cross for the Swede to expertly fire into the back of the City net. Bravo could have given away a second half penalty in what was a heated baptism of fire. The performances have improved slightly since a disasterous display - his return to Barcelona aside - but it doesn’t excuse what was a poor start to life in England for Bravo. 

Gary Cahill - 5.02 vs Arsenal 

It’s fair to say that Gary Cahill’s performance in Chelsea’s 3-0 defeat to Arsenal was far from exemplary. The collective outings of the Blues’ defence at the Emirates convinced Antonio Conte to swap from a four-man backline to a three-man defence, with the recent results speaking for themselves. While Cahill and the rest of the side look far more comfortable with a three-man backline, that it took such a huge loss to convince Conte to tinker with his set up will not have appealed to the Italian. 

The England international was caught in possession by Alexis Sanchez for Arsenal’s opening goal, weeks after a similar occurrence happened in Chelsea’s 2-2 draw with Swansea. Ultimately, it was an afternoon to forget for Cahill, whose error that led a the goal - one of two this season - one tackle and zero interceptions culminated in a lowly WhoScored rating of just 5.02. The performances have improved, but the disappointing showing against Arsenal will forever be a blip on Cahill’s record. 

Harry Arter - 5.00 vs West Ham 

Harry Arter may have impressed of late in his second season in the Premier League, but there have been his struggles. The 26-year-old endured the second lowest rated performance in the Premier League this term, earning a WhoScored rating of just 5.00 in Bournemouth’s 1-0 loss at West Ham back in August. His sending off in the latter stages of the loss compounded a miserable afternoon for the Cherries and Arter as Bournemouth underwent an opening month to the campaign to forget. 

Despite boasting a statistically calculated WhoScored strength of ‘defensive contribution’, Arter failed to make a tackle and registered just one interception as the game bypassed the midfielder. His two fouls contributed to his red card in what was a day to forget for Arter. Fortunately for the player and club, the performances have improved as Bournemouth continue to impress. 

Thibaut Courtois - 4.88 vs Swansea 

Unfortunately for Thibaut Courtois, he is the recipient of the worst WhoScored rating in a Premier League this term, gaining just a 4.88 in the 2-2 draw with Swansea. The Belgian conceded a second half penalty which was duly dispatched of by Gylfi Sigurdsson, earning a yellow card in the process, and promptly conceded again just three minutes later. Indeed, Swansea’s two shots on target both found a way past Courtois, who had Diego Costa to thank for ensuring Chelsea didn’t come away from the Liberty Stadium empty handed. 

For a team that likes to build from the back, Courtois struggled when in possession, registering a pass success rate of 78.3% and found a teammate with just five of his 10 attempted long balls. Fortunately for the goalkeeper, he has since improved, keeping four successive clean sheets following Chelsea’s switch to a back-three, but the showing against Swansea was far from satisfying for the self-assured shotstopper.

What do you believe to be the worst Premier League performance this season? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below