How the Premier League would look based on best possible 5-a-side lineups?

With Premier League action on hiatus until April 30th at the earliest, a date that has already been pushed back, there is to be no top-flight action for the foreseeable future as nations aim to tackle the Coronavirus outbreak. That means Liverpool's title celebration is on hold for the time being, but how would the table look if teams were only able to field a five-a-side team? 

Selecting one goalkeeper, one defender, one midfielder and one striker, coupled with the next top-rated player from their squad, would the Reds still sit top of the Premier League? We totalled up the average team rating of each club's best 5-aside-lineup to determine how the league would look, with goals scored and then man of the match awards taking precedent in the event of a tie. 

To be eligible for selection, a player must have played over half of the available Premier League games to them this season, so players who arrived over the winter are able to come into contention... 

Champions: Liverpool 

Liverpool sit 25 points clear at the top of the table, but the champions elect secured glory in this fictional table by the skin of their teeth. Alisson, Virgil van Dijk, Jordan Henderson, Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah boast an average team rating of 7.26, which was enough to hold off close competition from defending champions Manchester City and Leicester in particular. 

Champions League Spots: Liverpool, Leicester, Manchester City, Manchester United 

It's the Foxes rather than City that finish second to Liverpool with their quintet - Kasper Schmeichel, Ricardo Pereira, Wilfred Ndidi, James Maddison and Jamie Vardy - boasting an average rating of 7.25. Theyedge ahead of Manchester City and their side of Ederson, Fernandinho, Kevin De Bruyne, Riyad Mahrez and Sergio Aguero, boasting a rating 7.22. 

Rounding off the Champions League spots, Manchester United (7.21) finish fourth, which we're sure Red Devils supporters would welcome at this point in time. The January arrival of Bruno Fernandes has had a huge impact in the middle of the park and he, along with David De Gea, Aaron Wan Bissaka, Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford, would have been enough to secure a top-four finish in the five-a-side league, with Wolves (7.12), Tottenham (7.07) and Chelsea (7.00) all missing out. 

Aston Villa: Top Half 

One of the biggest surprises is that Aston Villa, who are currently 19th in the Premier League, would finish eighth in a five-a-side league using WhoScored.com ratings. Wesley, Matt Targett and Pepe Reina all make the cut, but it's the inclusion of Jack Grealish (7.33) and John McGinn (7.26) that enable the Villans to finish, not only well clear of relegation, but close to the European spots with an average team rating of 6.97. 

Sheffield United: Bottom Half 

At the opposite end of the table, Sheffield United, who are currently seventh, drop all the way down to 14th in this league. The Blades' highest rated player is Chris Basham (7.00) and with Sheffield United currently in the push for a European finish, that speaks to the team collective rather than star individual performances. With a 6.90, they finish above Everton (6.90), not because of goals scored, but rather the five players in their XI - Basham, Dean Henderson, John Fleck, Enda Stevens and Oliver McBurnie - have earned more WhoScored man of the match awards (9) than Everton's side combined - Jordan Pickford, Lucas Digne, Djibril Sidibe, Gylfi Sigurdsson and Richarlison (7). 

Norwich: Pukki Power 

Norwich would have Teemu Pukki to thank for beating the drop in this league. The Canaries' five-a-side WhoScored rating (6.88) is the same as Bournemouth, but the players in the Norwich side - Pukki, Tim Krul, Grant Hanley, Emiliano Buendia and Ondrej Duda - have scored more goals (11) than those in the Bournemouth squad - Aaron Ramsdale, Nathan Ake, Diego Rico, Philip Billing and Josh King (7). In fact, Pukki has scored all 11 league goals in that Canaries team. 

Relegation: Bournemouth, Southampton, Brighton 

As mentioned above, Bournemouth drop out of the Premier League in this five-a-side competition and the Cherries join fellow south coast sides Southampton (6.86) and Brighton (6.81). Saints had just one player who earned a WhoScored rating in excess of 6.95 (James Ward-Prowse - 7.09), while no Brighton player had a player whose WhoScored rating was above a 7.00.