'Playmaker's EFL 72': #21 Elliot Watt

With the current campaign entering its final straight, Playmaker took a lay down in a quiet room and emerged with a definitive list of its top 72 players from across the EFL. 

Those who followed 'The Playmaker 72' last season know the drill: this is less a countdown of the 'best' footballers across the EFL, more a celebration of those players who have lit up the Championship, League One and League Two throughout 2022/23.

To once again paraphrase the great Jeffrey 'The Dude' Lebowski, these are just, like, our opinions, man - and we will do our utmost to back up them up with facts, stats and analysis.

Let's welcome to the fray one of the most progressive passers in the EFL this season...

Number 21: Elliot Watt (Salford City)

A sea change in football tactics has seen the term 'defensive midfielder' become increasingly obselete - with 'quarterback' playmakers launching attacks and controlling possession, in addition to merely screening their backline. 

A specialist '6' that dictates tempo and sets the tone is a wonderful weapon for a team to have in their armoury, and Salford City midfielder Elliot Watt has excelled in the role this season in League Two. 

As the former Scotland youth international himself admits, there are weaknesses to his game - but an awareness of his limitations as well as his strengths has enabled Watt to shine for the Ammies in 2022/23. 

“It’s quite easy to look at me and judge me on my weaknesses: I’m not the most mobile, I’m not the quickest over the ground and I’m aware of that," Watt told Playmaker in an exclusive interview back in March. 

“But the manager here really values my strengths and the number six position is integral to the team and the way we want to play."

Very proud to have been voted Player of the season by the lads I’ve shared the dressing room with all season! Onto the play offs❤️ https://t.co/2o2aumXZ6u

— elliot watt (@ell_watt00) May 8, 2023

Recently named in League Two's 'Team of the Season', Watt's passing ability has shone brightly throughout this season and he has a raft of league-leading stats to attest to the fact. 

Joint-top for assists in the fourth tier with 15, Watt has played an incredible 124 key passes this season - by far the most in the division - to underline that the term 'defensive midfielder' is a misnomer despite his position at the base of Salford's midfield. 

That kind of attacking output is fantastic, but Watt hasn't neglected the nuts and bolts of his role - his composure and quality on the ball allowing him to complete the most successful passes (2202) in League Two in 2022/23. 

A whopping 286 of those successful passes have been long balls, and Watt is arguably the best proponent of long diagonal passes in the EFL...and he is a student of the art!

“People just see a long diagonal ball and think they’re all roughly the same. But...the perfect diagonal ball has the perfect weight, the perfect length and the timing of it has to be right," he told Playmaker when discussing the subject.  

The Ammies scraped into the League Two play-offs despite a 1-0 defeat to Gillingham on Monday, and Watt will hope to finish his fantastic campaign spraying passes around at Wembley! 

Playmaker's EFL 72...the countdown

21: Elliot Watt

22. David McGoldrick 23. Ian Maatsen 24. Michael Cooper

25. Bali Mumba 26: Tom Lockyer 27: Ryan Giles 28: Colby Bishop

29: Christian Walton 30: Amad Diallo 31: Mads Andersen 32: Sam Morsy 

33: Jack Clarke 34: Eiran Cashin 35: Alfie May 36: Wes Burns 37: Conor Bradley 

38: Anel Ahmedhodžić 39: Shaun Rooney 40: Ben Whitfield 41: Adam Phillips 

42: Joel Piroe 43: Kristian Dennis 44: Liam Palmer 45: Idris El Mizouni 

46: Taylor Harwood-Bellis 47: Ricardo Santos 48: João Pedro 49: Conor Hourihane 

50: Anass Zaroury 51: Morgan Whittaker 52: James Trafford 53: Sam Nombe 

54: Theo Archibald 55: Hayden Hackney 56: Gabriel Sara 57: Gustavo Hamer 

58: Miles Leaburn 59: Jacob Greaves 60: Dion Charles 61: John Swift 62: Luca Connell 

63: Jerry Yates 64: Dan Sweeney 65: Tom Ince 66: Dan Kemp 67: Finn Azaz 

68: Dan Agyei 69: Freddie Woodman 70: Will Collar 71: Anis Mehmeti 72: Ibou Touray