Are top players' fans thus eyed? (6)
I believe the answer is:
starry
'thus eyed?' is the definition.
The answer and definition are different parts of speech. However, past participle verbs and adjectives sometimes define each other.
'are top players' fans' is the wordplay.
'are top' becomes 'star' (eg a top player is a star player).
'players' fans' becomes 'ry' (I can't explain this - if you can you should believe this answer much more).
'star'+'ry'='STARRY'
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for starry that I've seen before include "It describes the sky on a cloudless night" , "Shining brightly" , "Heavenly" , "Description of Orion" , "'Of cloudless climes and - - skies' (Byron)" .)