3-1 seems to be the popular score line for Round 17 of not just the Premier League but a few matches around Europe as well, and in a round filled with quite a few goals, the Team of the Week was highly contested. Due to Chelsea and Southampton being postponed because of the FIFA Club World Cup, obviously none of them made it in here, taking away a few names from the selection pool but not making it terribly easier to choose. Let’s get going shall we?
Hugo Lloris (Tottenham)
Difficult week in terms of selecting keepers, and while there were many other candidates, I’ve gone with Hugo Lloris, not just because he kept a clean sheet and made some decent saves, but also because he’s starting to consistently and confidently keep Brad Friedel out of the side, which is no easy task. Will be interesting to see whether Friedel stays at the club, as nice as it is for Spurs to have such a great back up keeper, he could easily be in the starting lineup for half the other Premier League teams.
Phil Jones (Manchester United)
Since his exciting start to his Manchester United career, Jones has struggled with injuries and also getting into the game and making an impact. In the match against Sunderland he was one of the best on the field, and although I’ve been incredibly impressed with Rafael this season, Jones gave him a much needed break yet has caused a bit of a selection dilemma. He passed really well, bombed down the wing to help out the attacking front, made three tackles, and was generally sound all game long.
Chris Herd (Aston Villa)
I was going to give this spot to Baker for the second week in a row, or Ciaran Clarke, but decided Herd needs some love too. Villa have been incredibly solid at the back this season with all their young guys really stepping up and playing well. They have been a little bit leaky at times, but since losing to the two Manchesters, they’ve looked like a top half of the table side again. Maybe it’s the Aussie bias coming through but it’s really great to see such a young promising defender, and the cooperation between him, Clarke, Baker and Lowton has been surprisingly impressive. Just needs to work on his passing a bit, but otherwise he made five tackles and won all attempted aerial balls. Nice little Aussie contingent Villa have got going, would love to see it expand.
Jan Vertonghen (Tottenham)
Although he didn’t have overly much to deal with defensively, he was solid when needed, and was great going forward. His match winner was taken with great composure and he got off another four shots as well throughout the match, not to mention completed all but six percent of his passes.
Anthony Pilkington (Norwich)
They just keep on rolling, undefeated in 10 matches now. Pilkington worked hard, playing very well alongside Hoolahan and Snodgrass amongst others, and got a goal as well as the assist for the other one. Great match from him and another great match from Norwich.
Javi Garcia (Manchester City)
I surprised myself even by going with Javi Garcia ahead of his teammate David Silva, as his performance went a bit more under the radar from what I’ve seen. He’s been alright this season but this match was possibly his most impressive since moving to City, scoring a goal as well as breaking up play and working hard all game to help get his team the win.
Yaya Toure (Manchester City)
The strong partnership between him and Garcia was very promising, and Yaya seems to be getting back to that almost Ballon D’or form we saw from him last season. His pass to help get the first goal set up was perfection, and he got a nice goal to put the game beyond doubt right at the end. He can do it all, and against Newcastle he did a lot of it.
Adel Taarabt (QPR)
They’ve done it, they’ve finally won! Taarabt can’t take all the credit but he certainly deserves a reasonable chunk of it. He’s been one of the few threatening players for QPR this season, and his brace against Fulham really helped prove his worth, even if he does lack that bit of concentration and consistency. Hopefully more of his teammates will step up on the scoring front a bit, but he’s going to be crucial if QPR are to turnaround this dreadful first half of the season.
Santi Cazorla (Arsenal)
For a few weeks he looked a step behind the player that burst onto the Premier League scene earlier this season, but a hat trick and a great all round match from him places him firmly back in the Team of the Week. He also got an assist, passed very efficiently, made some great dribbles, and was just an all round star in a much more assured display from the Gunners.
Robin van Persie (Manchester United)
Every week seems to be either Rooney or RvP in here, and the way they’ve been performing makes it no surprise. RvP was at his best against Sunderland, opening the scoring and also assisting Rooney for the third. He probably could have had more goals to his name, as could have Rooney, but 5th win in a row and in a dominating and comfortable fashion is nothing to whinge about.
Christian Benteke (Aston Villa)
What a revelation this man is turning out to be. What is it about Belgians at the moment that make them so damn good? There must have been some seriously good nutrients in the water about 20 years ago because they are producing some of the best players around (mind you Benteke was actually born in the DR Congo). It’s a shame they don’t seem to perform so well on the international stage because they’ve got an all star team. Benteke was sensational against Liverpool, tormenting the Red defence, scoring two great goals and putting through a magnificent back heel assist for the other goal. He’s only 22, around the same as many of his teammates, and I wouldn’t be surprised if some big offers start coming in if he keeps playing like this.
Lloris
P. Jones Herd Vertonghen
Pilkington Garcia Yaya Taarabt
Cazorla
RvP Benteke
The Spot Kick 