For many of the Premier League’s top stars, success at this year’s World Cupwill be measured by what they do off the pitch as much as what they do on it. And the bad news for England’s players is that their performances are likely to fall far short compared to rivals.

With an estimated global audience of 3.4 billion, the championship presents the perfect platform for the players to exploit their following on social media.Pitchside, a social media consultancy specialising in sports, has created a “Social Player Index” that ranks the 108 players from the Premier League’s 20 clubs playing at the World Cup. Drawn from 28 countries in the competition, including 21 of the 30 most followed stars, they have a combined reach of almost half a billion followers.

Premier League’s most followed World Cup players

1 Mesut Özil Arsenal and Germany

2 Paul Pogba Manchester United and France

3 Sergio Agüero Manchester City and Argentina

4 Eden Hazard Chelsea and Belgium

5 David de Gea Manchester United and Spain

6 Mo Salah Liverpool and Egypt

7 Willian Chelsea and Brazil

8 Thibaut Courtois Chelsea and Belgium

9 Kevin de Bruyne Manchester City and Belgium

10 Marouane Fellaini Manchester United and Belgium

Jamie Doward