The 10 worst players in the Premier League this season

For all the talk of the unimaginable title-winning exploits of Leicester City and the top-to-bottom competitiveness of the Premier League, there were 10 players whose futile efforts this season did more harm than good for their clubs.

Here's a look at the English top flight's 10 worst players in descending order, with the caveat that each member of this unenviable list made no fewer than 19 league appearances:

10. Alan Hutton (Aston Villa)

In an era when full-backs are required to blend pace on the flanks with a penchant for incisive crosses, Aston Villa right-back Alan Hutton is a disinclined dinosaur dodging the inevitability of a meteor strike. The 31-year-old Scottish international started 26 league matches for the bottom-dwelling Birmingham side this season, and played for the top flight's worst defensive side, surrendering 76 goals and a dismal goal differential of minus-49.

9. Valon Behrami (Watford)

Few players in the Premier League are as adept at picking up a card moments into a substitute appearance than Watford summer signing Valon Behrami. On a three-year deal after a move from Hamburg, Behrami embodied the Hornets' lacklustre midfield, appearing in 21 league matches for Quique Sanchez Flores' lot. Despite playing in three World Cups for Switzerland, the faux blonde has been unable to replicate his form with country for club since a decent spell at Fiorentina in 2011-12. He stinks.

8. Martin Demichelis (Manchester City)

Loyalty is a quality best left for your pet dog rather than the manager of your football team, as Manchester City fans learned this season. Martin Demichelis had won over supporters after he had gone from an error-prone pony-tailed patsy to a disciplined, intelligent, yet admittedly fading defender. Manuel Pellegrini kept his old friend around for another year and it was a horror show, particularly when he gifted arch-rival Manchester United victory in March.

7. Brad Guzan (Aston Villa)

United States international 'keepers had a tough year. Tim Howard's rapid decline was matched only by that of Brad Guzan, who was both a victim of Aston Villa's atrocious defending and a reason the club earned a league second-worst six clean sheets in finishing dead last. To compound Guzan's worries is the emergence of second-choice shot-stopper Mark Bunn, who in 10 starts had four clean sheets to the American's two in 28.

6. Billy Jones (Sunderland)

For all the talk of Sunderland's improved defensive-minded unit with the winter acquisitions of Lamine Kone and Jan Kirchhoff, the Black Cats still managed to hand 23 starts to Shrewsbury-born full-back Billy Jones. Jones platooned with U.S. international DeAndre Yedlin for Sam Allardyce this season, and, despite offering flexibility that saw Jones play in all positions across the backline, he's become more of a liability than an asset in Sunderland's narrow safety-securing season.

5. John Stones (Everton)

Will the real John Stones please stand up? Once thought to be the heir apparent to John Terry at Chelsea, Everton's England international had an underwhelming season with the mid-table Toffees. The club conceded three goals in back-to-back games in May for the first time since 2009. Only five teams in the Premier League surrendered more goals than Everton, three of whom were relegated, with the other two, Sunderland and Bournemouth, narrowly escaping the drop. His lack of poise on the ball and willingness to cede possession in dangerous areas was especially disconcerting for fans of Everton and England alike.

4. Gabby Agbonlahor (Aston Villa)

Few players embodied Villa's capitulation more than Gabby Agbonlahor. When not missing matches to attend fat camp, the thrice-capped former England international Flabby Gabby was photographed partying whilst surrounded by canisters of laughing gas before having his captaincy stripped. The inaugural graduate of the "Jack Wilshere School of Smoking in Public" was also caught smoking a shisha pipe, which was the nail in the coffin for a player who scored once this season. Tough campaign for the local boy who joined the club as an 8-year-old.

3. Sebastien Bassong (Norwich City)

Norwich City's return to the Premier League after a one-year hiatus was marred by utterly disastrous defending from the likes of Cameroonian international Sebastien Bassong. The Canaries' relegation was Bassong's fourth as a footballer, as the East Anglians nabbed a league-worst five clean sheets. The 29-year-old started 30 matches for Alex Neil this season, and with one year left on his contract, those at Carrow Road could be in for another season of catastrophe.

2. Cameron Jerome (Norwich City)

Few players in the Premier League pair a proclivity for tireless hard work with paltry results like Norwich striker Cameron Jerome. Good intentions don't win matches, and neither do three goals in 34 league appearances. It's hard not to feel bad for the 29-year-old, who, unlike Watford's Troy Deeney and former Burnley standout Danny Ings, hasn't been able to convert lower-league success to top-flight honours.

1. Joleon Lescott (Aston Villa)

When not making utterly daft comments about Aston Villa's season or posting photos of luxury vehicles on the day the club dropped, to the disdain of supporters and the enjoyment of Stoke's Twitter account, centre-back Joleon Lescott was the worst regular on the league's worst side. Lescott, 33, started 30 matches for Villa this season. It won two of those fixtures. Should have taken the MLS deal when you had the chance to jump ship.