ADAM ranks the best fullbacks

Where do Timber, Calafiori stand among Europe's best by the numbers?

Boy, Arsenal have some great fullbacks. And at the risk of devaluing my own work here, I didn’t necessarily need a formula to tell me that. But despite Timber and Calafiori’s emergence, the club would also be well-advised to stay informed on the top fullbacks in the market, for a couple of reasons.

For one, Ben White is getting a little on the aged side, now 28 and due to see his contract expire in 2028 (plus an option year). His off-and-on fitness due to recent injuries, were it to continue, could conspire with his age to lead Arsenal to move on to a new right back by then. On the left side, Myles Lewis-Skelly’s move away from fullback seems like an inevitability. Calafiori and Piero Hincapié could certainly be the long-term plan, but you would think Myles moving would create a need for either a left-footer at CB or a new left back.

Not that I needed a reason, but all of that seems like a pretty good reason to be tracking the best of the younger fullbacks!

Before we dive into full rankings, my standard disclaimers:

• This list is created relying fully on statistics from this season and last. Players are rated using a whole bunch of data points of varying weights.

• Minimum for inclusion was 1.0 90s, or 90 minutes of domestic league play so far this campaign. Players with more starts and minutes were weighted favorably.

• I don’t follow a hard-and-fast age limit, but I do prioritize players on the younger side of the “peak age” spectrum.

• All scores are subject to an adjustment according to league strength, so you shouldn’t have to mentally raise or lower rankings to make it more “fair.”

• Last but not least: I always encourage a healthy dose of the eye test before forming a final opinion on any player, so please consume this list responsibly. This list does not necessarily reflect my personal rankings, as I have been known to disagree with my own formulas from time to time. This is particularly true for defensive players, since good defense typically means the absence of an event.

Now, let’s get into the data!