MX23RW : Saturday, December 14 04:24:34| >> :60:747:747:

Premier League Team of the Week - Harry Kane, Mason Mount, Gabriel Magalhaes

Sports Mole selects its Premier League Team of the Week, including Harry Kane, Mason Mount and Gabriel Magalhaes.

A sensational set of Premier League fixtures has now drawn to a close, and Arsenal's lead at the top of the table has been extended to four points following a nervy 1-0 win over Leeds United at Elland Road.

The Gunners are now out of sight of reigning champions Manchester City following their 1-0 defeat to Liverpool at Anfield, while Tottenham Hotspur are hot on the coattails of Pep Guardiola's side after overcoming Everton 2-0.

Chelsea strengthened their position in the top four by beating Aston Villa 2-0, but Manchester United lost a bit of ground on their Champions League rivals after being held to a goalless draw by Newcastle United.

Brighton & Hove Albion boss Roberto De Zerbi is still waiting for his first victory at the helm after a 2-0 defeat to Brentford, while newly-promoted sides Bournemouth and Fulham played out a 2-2 draw.

Elsewhere, Leicester City and Crystal Palace's lunchtime battle ended goalless, Southampton and West Ham United shared the spoils in a 1-1 draw, and managerless Wolverhampton Wanderers sent Nottingham Forest bottom with a 1-0 Molineux triumph.

Here, Sports Mole selects its Premier League Team of the Week for the latest round of fixtures.


DEFENCE

Kepa Arrizabalaga in action for Chelsea on October 1, 2022© Reuters

There was no shortage of standout goalkeeping displays this weekend, with Aaron Ramsdale, David Raya, Vicente Guaita and Alisson Becker all worthy of a mention. However, the Kepa Arrizabalaga redemption arc at Chelsea is gathering momentum, as the Spaniard kept his side in the game versus Villa with seven saves - including a magnificent triple - and his stop from Danny Ings's point-blank header could go down as one of the saves of the season.

Trent Alexander-Arnold was fit enough for a spot on the bench as Liverpool took on Man City, but James Milner performed admirably in his teammate's absence against his former club. The 36-year-old's inclusion in the starting lineup nowadays often worries Reds fans, but he kept Phil Foden quiet with two tackles, four clearances and three out of three aerial duels won in a brilliant display.

Milner is not the only member of the Liverpool backline in our XI this week, as Joe Gomez also deputised expertly for an injured teammate in Ibrahima Konate, scooping the man of the match award with six clearances, three tackles and an 82% pass accuracy to thwart the champions.

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta insisted that the delay was worth it as a power cut paused Arsenal's clash with Leeds, as Gabriel Magalhaes would not be in this team without modern technology. The Brazilian has a reputation for hot-headedness and had seemingly undone Arsenal's hard work by kicking out at Patrick Bamford, giving away a penalty and receiving a red card in added time, but VAR came to his rescue, and his overall performance was quality, making four crucial blocks, three interceptions and three tackles while the Gunners had their backs against the wall.

There were no real standout left-back performances over the weekend, and it was impossible to ignore Wout Faes's contribution in Leicester's draw with Palace, as the former Reims man was solid as a rock with three tackles, three interceptions and a 92% pass accuracy at the King Power.


MIDFIELD

Declan Rice celebrates scoring for West Ham United against Southampton on October 16, 2022© Reuters

Talk about a brilliant way to score your first Premier League goal for a year, as Declan Rice acted as West Ham's saviour against Southampton. The England man curled home a delightful shot from the edge of the box to rescue a point for his side, and he also completed 96% of his passes and won all four of his ground duels in an all-action performance.

Back from suspension with a bang, the importance of Ruben Neves's return for Wolves was not being understated by anyone, and the 25-year-old temporarily ended his side's profligate streak with the game-winning penalty against Nottingham Forest, and he also completed two successful dribbles from two attempts to take a leading role in a vital win.

Rice and Neves were not the only lynchpins to make the net ripple for their teams in gameweek 10, as Tottenham's ever-present Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg surged up the field along with Rodrigo Bentancur to score his side's second against Everton, although a deflection off Alex Iwobi helped the Dane pick out the top corner with a neat side-footed effort.


ATTACK

Brentford forward Ivan Toney after scoring against Brighton & Hove Albion on October 14, 2022.© Reuters

Mason Mount and Tyrone Mings may be exchanging a few awkward glances the next time both men find themselves in the England squad, as the Villa defender was responsible for both of the Chelsea man's goals on Sunday. Mount's 25th Premier League goal could be one of the easiest he will ever score in the division - volleying home with panache after Mings's failed clearance - and the centre-back's foul then presented the playmaker with the opportunity to lash home a free kick into the centre of the goal to kill a previously competitive game off.

Three Three Lions slot into the final third of our Team of the Week here, as Ivan Toney stole the show on Friday night to steer Brentford to victory over Brighton, with his cheeky flick preceding a calmly-taken penalty, and he has sent quite the selection message to Gareth Southgate ahead of Qatar.

Even if there is a space for Toney on the plane, the Brentford man will only be playing backup to Harry Kane, who banished his penalty woes from the Champions League clash with Eintracht Frankfurt to beat Jordan Pickford from 12 yards against Everton. The award of that penalty was controversial, but Kane then played a key role in the build-up of Spurs' second goal in a memorable 400th appearance for the North London club.


SPORTS MOLE'S PREMIER LEAGUE TEAM OF THE WEEK

PL TOTW GW10

Sports Mole's Premier League Team of the Week (4-3-1-2): Kepa; Milner, Gomez, Gabriel, Faes; Rice, Neves, Hojbjerg; Mount; Kane, Toney


ID:497149:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:collect12906:
Written by
Ben Knapton
Collect / Create New Data
Share this article now:
Manchester City's Erling Braut Haaland celebrates after the match on October 2, 2022
Read Next:
Premier League Team of the Week - Haaland, Partey, Maddison
>
Sports Mole Logo
Enter your email address to subscribe to Sports Mole's free match previews newsletter! Updates are sent twice a week.
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool14112129111835
2Chelsea1594235181731
3Arsenal1585229151429
4Manchester CityMan City158342721627
5Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest157441918125
6Aston Villa157442323025
7Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton156632522324
8Bournemouth157352320324
9Brentford157263128323
10Fulham156542220223
11Tottenham HotspurSpurs1562731191220
12Newcastle UnitedNewcastle155551921-220
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd155461918119
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham155372028-818
15Everton143561421-714
16Leicester CityLeicester153572130-914
17Crystal Palace152761420-613
18Ipswich TownIpswich151681427-139
19Wolverhampton WanderersWolves1523102338-159
20Southampton1512121131-205


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!