Five games into the 2010-2011 season, and Chelsea look scary. United and Arsenal aren’t too far behind, but have already dropped four points each, and look much more vulnerable than the champions. Putting that little intro aside, we’re here to showcase the best players after a month of footy, the five best players so far in this early stage of the Premiership season.

Florent Malouda

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The 30 year old French international who scored France’s only goal during their abysmal World Cup visit isn’t the only reason Chelsea have started their title defense with 5 wins and 21 goals, but he just might be the biggest factor, alongside Didier Drogba. Six goals in the first five matches, most in the league (tied), continuing right from where he left off in 2009-2010, having a fantastic second half to the season and finishing it with 12 league goals, a career high.

It’s still early, but Malouda’s main “weakness” his on/off pitch temper and occasional sulking, seems to have been subdued, paving way for his very powerful and fast style of play. It’s easy to be happy when your team has a scoring record of 21-1.

Nani

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Nani will never be Cristiano Ronaldo, but that’s not so bad. He’s great, at times, when he remembers to keep it simple and not always try the most complicated move in front of him. He showed great improvement, on the pitch and with his attitude in the second half of the 2009-2010 season, putting his incident with Alex Ferguson behind. United have already dropped four points early on, but Nani’s form seems to be pitch perfect. If you watched him tear Konchesky to shreds yesterday in United’s dramatic win over Liverpool, you’ll understand what I meant. Nani’s unpredictable as ever, but his decision making has vastly improved and his ability to keep it is crucial in United’s hunt for silverware.

Theo Walcott

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Another fine and promising start to the season, and another injury, which will put him out till mid-October probably. Walcott managed to play three games for Arsenal, scoring four goals, a career best for the lightning quick Striker/Winger, including a hat trick against Blackpool on August 21, his first hat trick for Arsenal. When Walcott returns, Arsenal are hoping he’ll pick it up where he stopped – quick, creative, efficient, a player who should have been on Capello’s World Cup squad, a not the sometimes frustratingly un-intelligent player he tends to be.

Didier Drogba

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Five goals and five assists in the first five games, after a career season in 2009-2010 with 29 goals in 32 matches, is Didier Drogba, at 32, with as much haters as he has fans, the best striker in the world? He seems to be proving it week in and week out, with a goal and/or an assists in each game so far this season for Chelsea, looking simply unstoppable. Can he keep it up? I wouldn’t bet against it.

Dimitar Berbatov

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Another striker who’ll never win Mr. Popular, Berbatov leads the Premiership in scoring after five matches, along with Malouda, with six goals, scoring in each one of United’s games this season except for one. Laziest player worth over 30 million pounds? Maybe, but so far this season, Berbatov is United’s go to guy, winning a lot of Red Devil hearts after his hat trick yesterday against Liverpool, including an absolutely sublime execution in the second goal. A tough 2009-2010 and a long summer of resting maybe changed something for Berbatov, who seems ready to prove he’s worth the big cash Fergie landed him for.