Goalkeeper: Robin Olsen, Aston Villa
With Villa’s regular number one Emiliano Martínez ruled out through injury, Olsen deputised expertly despite his side coming out on the losing side against Brighton. He made seven saves in total, including stopping Joao Pedro’s late penalty and he was unfortunate that Pedro nodded home the rebound to secure all three points for the Seagulls.
Defender: Tino Livramento, Newcastle
Newcastle’s right-back continues to impress for Eddie Howe’s men as he makes the team of the week for the second consecutive time. He was a constant threat down the right flank — completing 80% of his passes and creating one chance — and he was equally impressive defensively, winning 100% of his tackles and making three clearances.
Defender: Ethan Pinnock, Brentford
Pinnock was a stalwart at the heart of the Bees defence as they held Fulham to a goalless draw at the Gtech Community Stadium. He made 16 clearances and seven recoveries as he helped Brentford register their seventh clean sheet of the season.
Defender: Chris Richards, Crystal Palace
The Crystal Palace centre-back was rock solid during the Eagles’ 4-0 thrashing of Manchester United at Selhurst Park on Monday evening. He won 80% of his duels and made seven recoveries as Palace’s impressive form under new manager Oliver Glasner continued.
Defender: Joško Gvardiol, Manchester City
The Croatian defender also makes the side for a second consecutive week after another impressive performance against Wolves this weekend. He was tidy in possession throughout, completing 87% of his passes, while also winning nine of his 11 duels as City closed the gap on league leaders Arsenal to just one point with a game in hand. They are now 7/20 to win a fourth successive Premier League title.
Midfielder: Michael Olise, Crystal Palace
Olise was a constant threat in Palace’s impressive 4-0 rout of Manchester United. He opened the scoring with a fine solo goal, bursting through the heart of United’s defence before calmly finishing into the bottom corner. The Frenchman then rounded off the scoring with a thunderous strike into the top corner as Palace made it four wins in their last five games.
Midfielder: Rodri, Manchester City
Rodri was integral to his side’s 5-1 thrashing of Wolves at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday. He kept the ball moving in the middle of the park in customary fashion, completing 80 of the 86 passes he attempted, and also provided the assists for Erling Haaland’s second and Julian Alvarez’s late strike.
Midfielder: Declan Rice, Arsenal
Arsenal’s £100 million man dominated the midfield as the Gunners picked up a vital three points in the title race with a convincing 3-0 victory over Bournemouth. He provided the assist for Leandro Trossard’s goal before rounding off a fine all round display with his side’s third of the afternoon with a composed finish late on.
Forward: Mohamed Salah, Liverpool
Salah looked back to his imposing best on Saturday as Liverpool put a difficult couple of weeks behind them to beat Tottenham 4-2 at Anfield. The Egyptian opened the scoring with an early header from Cody Gakpo’s cross before providing the assist for Harvey Elliott’s stunning strike as he became the first player in Premier League history to score 10+ goals and provide 10+ assists in three consecutive seasons. Salah is now just two assists behind Ollie Watkins and is priced at 4/1 to finish the season with the most assists.
Forward: Erling Haaland, Manchester City
After a quiet few weeks by his own remarkable standards, Haaland returned to form with a stunning four-goal performance this weekend. His two first half penalties and stunning leap and cushioned header made it 3-0 to the hosts at half-time before he netted his fourth of the afternoon with a wonderful curling effort into the top corner. The Norwegian striker is now the quickest player to register 60 Premier League goals in Premier League history.
Forward: Nicolas Jackson, Chelsea
Chelsea’s Senegalese striker’s brace against West Ham took his Premier League tally to 13 for the season as Mauricio Pochettino’s men aim to secure European football next term. He also provided the assist for Cole Palmer’s opener as the Blue’s lept above Manchester United into seventh place. Chelsea are now 9/4 to finish in the top six.
The team is based on the following metrics:
xG: Expected goals. A metric used to measure the quality of a shot based on variables such as shot angle, distance, type of assist and type of shot
G: Goals. The number of actual goals scored
xT: Expected threat. A metric used to measure ball progression, in particular the impact of a player’s dribbles and carries in taking a team into ‘dangerous' areas
xD: Expected defence. Used to measure how much ’threat’ a player prevented with their defensive actions
xA: Expected assists. Used to measure the pass before the shot where the pass is assigned xG value of that shot. Takes into account various factors such as type and length of pass as well as its end-point
All statistics provided by BetMGM. Visit betmgm.co.uk 18+ BeGambleAware.org
