'Playmaker's EFL 72': #45 Idris El Mizouni

With the current campaign entering its final straight, Playmaker have signed on the dotted line and agreed to rank the top 72 players from across the EFL this season. 

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.

Next up, we have a member of League Two's Team Of The Season...Orient's Idris El Mizouni.

Number 45: Idris El Mizouni (Leyton Orient)

Leyton Orient struck gold when they acquired the services of midfielder Idris El Mizouni on loan from Ipswich Town during the summer transfer window. 

To be fair, El Mizouni himself was fortunate to join a team taking leaps and bounds under the guidance of manager Richie Wellens, and the Tunisian has been a stand-out performer for the O's, who clinched the League Two title last weekend with a a 2-0 win over Crewe. 

Although Orient have been miserly at the back all season, they have also played some fantastic football going forward and - as the team's midfield maestro - El Mizouni's work in the centre of the pitch has been instrumental to their success. The ability to excel defensively and offensively is a rare commodity in a League Two midfielder, but the Ipswich academy graduate has that dual element to his game. 

In terms of minutes played, only O's goalkeeper Lawrence Vigouroux (3870 minutes) and defender Omar Beckles (3434 minutes) have played more minutes than the Tunisia international in 2022/23, El Mizouni clocking up an impressive 3211 minutes. 

It's evident that the Londoners' game plan revolves around El Mizouni, and his stats are right in the thick of the action. Currently, he leads the team for most tackles won (112), most interceptions (64), most passes completed (1700), and most fouls committed (63).

Given his remarkable performances, it comes as no surprise that El Mizouni was included in League Two's Team of the Season, cementing his position as one of the league's most impressive performers. 

🏆 Presenting the #SkyBetLeagueTwo Team of the Season! 📋

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— Sky Bet League Two (@SkyBetLeagueTwo) April 23, 2023

Ipswich Town, who are poised to confirm promotion to the Championship, boast an array of impressive central midfield options including Sam Morsy, Dom Ball, Lee Evans, Panutche Camara, and Cameron Humphreys. 

With such a strong pool of talent at their disposal, El Mizouni may find it difficult to secure regular playing time for the Tractor Boys despite his standout season with Orient.

Could a permanent move to London be on the cards for the 22-year-old?

Playmaker's EFL 72...the countdown

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