Gameweek seven of the 2021-22 Premier League season is done and dusted, with Chelsea sitting pretty at the top of the pile following a 3-1 success over Southampton at Stamford Bridge.
Title rivals Liverpool and Manchester City played out a pulsating 2-2 draw to occupy second and third spots respectively, while Manchester United remain in the top four despite being held to a 1-1 stalemate by fifth-placed Everton.
Brighton & Hove Albion kept their strong run going with a goalless draw against Arsenal and probably should have taken all three points, while Tottenham Hotspur returned to winning ways with a 2-1 success over Aston Villa.
Elsewhere, Brentford took the spoils in a London derby with West Ham United, Crystal Palace and Leicester City drew 2-2, and Leeds United sent Xisco Munoz packing with a 1-0 win over Watford.
Wolverhampton Wanderers emerged victorious 2-1 against Newcastle United to end a run of 1-1 stalemates in that fixture, while there was no way through for relegation candidates Norwich City and Burnley.
Here, Sports Mole selects its Team of the Week for gameweek seven of the Premier League season.
DEFENCE
© Reuters
Attacking prowess was never on the menu between Burnley and Norwich in a basement battle, but Canaries goalkeeper Tim Krul ensured that his side would come away with their first point of the season after making five saves at Turf Moor.
The second member of the Norwich backline to earn a place in our Team of the Week is Grant Hanley, who truly put in a captain's performance against Burnley with a whopping 15 clearances, five interceptions and five aerial duels won during a mammoth display at the back.
Chelsea's Trevoh Chalobah has had to wait patiently for his next opportunity after his opening-day goal against Crystal Palace, but having made the starting lineup against Southampton, the 22-year-old was in the right place at the right time to score the opener while making five tackles, four clearances, winning seven of his eight ground duels and posting a pass success rate of 91%.
Fellow Blue Cesar Azpilicueta chalked up an assist from the right-hand side for Timo Werner's goal against the Saints and was extremely unlucky not to make the net ripple himself - although his crossbar-rattling shot found its way to Ben Chilwell for Chelsea's third - and he succeeded with all three of his dribble attempts and completed 43 of his 50 passes on the day. The final member of the rearguard is Marc Cucurella, who terrorized Takehiro Tomiyasu during Arsenal's visit, winning five ground duels and making four tackles, and the Spaniard was unfortunate not to come out on the winning side.
MIDFIELD
© Reuters
The Norwich representatives come thick and fast in this Team of the Week, with Mathias Normann a constant presence in the middle of the park against Burnley. The Norwegian hit the bar from a tight angle and saw a powerful free kick beaten away by Nick Pope, while he also played his part defensively with seven clearances, three blocks and two tackles.
Tottenham have experienced very little joy in recent weeks, but Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg helped to lift the spirits in North London with a well-placed opener to set his side on their way to victory over Aston Villa, while he also won eight out of 10 ground duels, registered an 89% pass success rate and completed five successful dribbles in front of the home crowd.
Andros Townsend has already affirmed that he is loving life at Everton, and it does not get more memorable than an Old Trafford goal. The ex-Crystal Palace man was on hand to coolly slot home the equaliser following a sweeping counter-attack, and he also made three interceptions to help his side take a point back to Merseyside.
The Everton man was not the headline-making Merseyside winger over the weekend, though, as Mohamed Salah staked his claim for the league's best player by producing a one-man show of brilliance against Manchester City. After playing an inch-perfect pass through to Sadio Mane for the opening goal, Salah weaved in and out of blue shirts before crashing home a wonderful solo goal at Anfield, which saw him strike for the seventh game in a row across all competitions.
ATTACK
© Reuters
Having managed to displace Adama Traore in the first XI - no mean feat indeed - Wolverhampton Wanderers' Hwang Hee-chan justified his selection with both goals in Saturday's win over Newcastle, firstly finishing from a tight angle in the opening 45 minutes before producing a near-identical finish after the break to seemingly nail down his place in the starting lineup.
A two-man strikeforce spearheaded by a blossoming partnership sees Bruno Lage's star man Raul Jimenez earn a place as he reignites his Molineux career. After shaking off a challenge from Sean Longstaff and slipping the ball through for Hwang's first, the Mexican produced a silky turn of pace to set up his teammate's second and catch the eye for all the right reasons.
Sports Mole's Premier League Team of the Week
Sports Mole's Premier League Team of the Week (4-4-2): Krul; Azpilicueta, Hanley, Chalobah, Cucurella; Salah, Hojbjerg, Normann, Townsend; Hwang, Jimenez
