Hello to you and welcome to Team of the Weekend. The Premier League returned after a brief absence for the FA Cup and what a strange time it was. With own goals and incidents aplenty there’s a lot to discuss as we cobble together a team of the best and worst.
Goalkeeper
David De Gea – Just the 11 saves on Sunday from Man Utd’s stopper. Tottenham threw everything they had at him – arguably too at him, but some of the saves were incredible. Man Utd fans will be eternally grateful to that fax machine.
Defenders
Craig Cathcart – Scoring at both ends is a certain way to make the team. The own goal was a thing of beauty. Watford fired the ball off each other numerous time and unfortunately for Cathcart, he got the final touch. He made up for it though with a fine header at the right end as Watford continued their gallop for 7th. Can Hornets gallop?
Yan Valery – Quite the learning curve for the PES Master League legend. He spent the afternoon trying to get sent off before finally being successful before half time. You have to respect Hasenhuttl for giving youth a chance but Valery was a bit of a loose cannon here. The Saints still won though, credit where it’s due.
Fabinho – Liverpool’s defenders are dropping like flies. Fabinho has found himself as the latest centre half and summed up Liverpool’s grit. Brighton away is tough for even a seasoned centre back but Fabinho stood up to the physical test well and came away with a clean sheet.
Midfielders
Samir Nasri – Declan Rice was pretty happy wasn’t he? Imagine how he will feel when he decides if he is English or Irish. I’ve given the place to Samir Nasri though. I’m not sure how he’s made it back to the Premier League but he got the assist for Rice amidst a chorus of boos. Why do these things always happen to Arsenal? Nasri could prove to be a great freebie especially if Arnautovic is heading for the exit.
Andre Schurrle – Goal of the weekend? A lovely takedown and smash from the German International. It wasn’t enough for Fulham to win the game. They managed to lose despite Burnley having no shots on target, a quite remarkable feat.
Tom Cleverley – It’s always nice when a player scores after a long layoff. It’s all the better when it’s a sweet as a nut top corner volley. Watford have that 7th spot that seemingly nobody really wants but performances like this could lead to them being in the Europa League next season.
Andre Gomes – Is it just me or did Andre Gomes look like a man who had plans next weekend? He spent a good 20 minutes trying to get sent off but somehow completed 90 minutes. Everton rode their luck at times but will be thankful to end their recent bad home run.
Forwards
Jamie Vardy – Well done, you are our diver of the week! We’ve all known for years Vardy has been fishing for contact – dangle a leg at your peril. Only this time, there wasn’t even an attempt at a tackle. Vardy went down and Michael Oliver saw straight through it. The only shame is that he can’t be punished for it.
Shane Long – Stat of the week: Long’s last four goals have come under four different managers. He owes this one to Kasper Schmeichel who, in my opinion, actually palmed this one in. Long also won the penalty as he proved to be a nuisance to the Foxes all day.
Marko Arnautovic – Why, at the peak of your career, would you want to go and play in a comparatively poor league like China? Ah yes, money. West Ham have a real chance of finishing 7th in my view, something reasonable seems to be brewing for Pellegrini. To give all of that up makes no sense to me. He certainly seemed to be waving goodbye on Saturday and frankly, good riddance to him if that’s his attitude.
Manager
Sean Dyche – Winning a match without any shots on target is quite a rarity. Winning a match 2-1 without a shot on target is frankly ridiculous. Fair play to Dyche though, things got pretty rough towards the end of 2018 but they’ve strung some wins together and eased clear of the drop zone. Some big weeks ahead.
That’s all from me this week but I’ll be back next week to do it all again. Goodbye for now!
