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Sports Mole's Premier League Team of the Season

Sports Mole's Premier League Team of the Season
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The Sports Mole team select their Premier League best XIs of the 2019-20 season so far.

The Premier League season remains in limbo after more than a month without any top-flight action as a result of the coronavirus crisis.

The enforced stoppage means that the 2019-20 campaign will forever be remembered as perhaps the most unusual of all time, although that should not detract from a season which, until that point, had been one of the most remarkable too.

Liverpool have raised the bar to a level never seen before in English or European football, building an unprecedented 25-point lead by the time play was called to a halt and dropping only five points all season.

Jurgen Klopp's side look certain to not only end their 30-year wait for a title when play resumes, but also to smash the points record, having already written themselves into the history books on a number of other occasions this term.

The Reds have by no means been the only standout performers, though; Leicester City are well on course for Champions League football, while Sheffield United have defied all pre-season predictions to find themselves in the hunt for a European spot too.

With the exception of Liverpool, the rest of the league's 'big six' have been below their usual standards too, with Manchester City seemingly meekly surrendering their title in addition to being banned from European football, while inconsistency has dogged Chelsea, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal in an error-strewn race for the top four.

The relegation battle is also still being keenly contested at the other end of the table, with only two points separating 16th from 19th.

It has been a memorable campaign already, then, and here members of the Sports Mole team have selected their best XIs from the 2019-20 season so far.



Barney Corkhill, Editor

PL TOTS

Unsurprisingly, Liverpool dominate this team with nine of the 11 players, but that is not to say that others have not been hugely impressive in certain areas of the field too. Goalkeeper is a case in point, with Alisson Becker getting the gloves but Dean Henderson, Nick Pope and Kasper Schmeichel all deserving of mentions.

Alisson gets the nod for me as he has conceded just 11 goals in his 20 Premier League outings this season - half as many as Henderson has shipped - while he also has a superior save percentage to prove that his record is not solely down to playing behind a better defence.

There would be no problem when it comes to goals at the other end, with the front three having directly contributed to 68 between them in the Premier League this season - 23 apiece for Jamie Vardy and Sadio Mane, with Mohamed Salah just one behind.

Vardy leads the way in the goalscoring stakes with 19 and, while others may boast a better goals-per-game ratio - largely due to the drought which the former England man finally ended before play was suspended - he does still have better shot accuracy and shooting success rate than other contenders such as Sergio Aguero, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Roberto Firmino.

Mane and Salah have once again been key for Liverpool this season too; no duo has combined for as many goals as that pair, and in terms of winning goals they lead the way too - Salah has a league-high seven, while Mane and Firmino are one behind with six apiece.



Matt Law, Football Editor

Matt Law TOTS

On-loan Manchester United goalkeeper Dean Henderson has been excellent for Sheffield United in the Premier League this season, keeping 10 clean sheets. Only Burnley's Nick Pope has a superior record this term in terms of shutouts, with Henderson outperforming the likes of Alisson Becker, Ederson and David de Gea.

In truth, it was not too difficult to pick three Liverpool players at the back as Trent Alexander-Arnold, Andrew Robertson and Virgil van Dijk have all been outstanding. The final spot in defence goes to Sheffield United's John Egan, who has been key to his side's form. The 27-year-old has only missed one league game for Chris Wilder's team during the 2019-20 campaign and has put in a string of impressive performances for the Blades.

Jordan Henderson - terrific for Liverpool - is joined in midfield by Manchester City's Kevin De Bruyne, who has a league-high 16 assists. The final spot in the middle of the park goes to Jack Grealish, who has managed seven goals and six assists in 26 Premier League appearances for a struggling Aston Villa side.

Jamie Vardy leads the Premier League goalscoring chart with 19 and makes my XI, while Liverpool's Sadio Mane has 14 goals and nine assists in England's top flight during the 2019-20 campaign. Mohamed Salah is a notable absentee, but Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has struck 17 Premier League goals for an inconsistent Arsenal side and therefore has to make the side.



Darren Plant, Senior Reporter

Darren TOTS

Seven of this team are simple picks, with the half-a-dozen representatives of Liverpool and Manchester City's Kevin De Bruyne each producing the goods on a consistent basis throughout the campaign.

In a season where no goalkeeper has necessarily stood out, Dean Henderson is the logical pick for helping Sheffield United into European contention, while centre-back Harry Maguire is well on his way to justifying the £80m that Manchester United shelled out for his signature last summer.

With Leicester City sitting in third position in the table, we cannot name this team without a Foxes player being selected. The likes of James Maddison and Jamie Vardy have received most of the plaudits, but Leicester would be further down the table if it was not for Wilfred Ndidi doing the dirty work in midfield.

In attack, Raul Jimenez gets the nod over Sergio Aguero. Although the Argentine has more goals from fewer matches, we cannot ignore Jimenez's all-round performances and general impact at Wolverhampton Wanderers, with 13 goals and six assists being complemented with a vital role when it comes to defending set pieces.



Dan Lewis, Senior Reporter

Dan L TOTS

This side is dominated by Liverpool players - not all that surprising when you consider the ease with which they have seen off all comers this season.

The entire back four is made up of Reds defenders, with Joe Gomez getting the nod over the likes of Harry Maguire and Jonny Evans, even though he has only played 19 times this season.

Kevin De Bruyne and Jordan Henderson were easy midfield selections, and I've gone for Jack Grealish over James Maddison as the latter went off the boil post-Christmas.

Up top, the stats do the talking for Jamie Vardy and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang - 19 and 17 goals respectively - while Sadio Mane has so often been Liverpool's go-to to man.



Ben Knapton, Reporter

Ben TOTS

Sheffield United deserve a player in the Team of the Season without a doubt, and Dean Henderson has played a huge part in their rise to the European places and he gets my vote in between the sticks. Alisson and Nick Pope were both worthy candidates.

We've been spoiled for choice with wingers this season. Sadio Mane was a shoo-in, and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang gets the nod due to his prolific goalscoring record while playing out of position. Mohamed Salah and Adama Traore have both enjoyed terrific campaigns, but Aubameyang's importance to Arsenal is unparalleled.

Danny Ings partners top goalscorer Jamie Vardy up top. Ings has seen his career ravaged by injuries, and I do not think many people could have predicted his 15-goal return, and the Englishman firmly deserves a spot.

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Virgil van Dijk and Mohamed Salah celebrate Liverpool's win over Manchester United in the Premier League on January 19, 2020.
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rhs 2.0
Tables
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool29271166214582
2Manchester CityMan City29193771314060
3Leicester CityLeicester29165858283053
4Chelsea29146951391248
5Manchester UnitedMan Utd29129844301445
6Sheffield UnitedSheff Utd29111173025544
7Wolverhampton WanderersWolves29101364134743
8Tottenham HotspurSpurs29118104740741
9Arsenal2991374039140
10Burnley29116123440-639
11Crystal Palace29109102632-639
12Everton29107123746-937
13Newcastle UnitedNewcastle2998122541-1635
14Southampton29104153552-1734
15Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton29611123240-829
16West Ham UnitedWest Ham2976163550-1527
17Watford2969142744-1727
18Bournemouth2976162947-1827
19Aston Villa2975173456-2226
20Norwich CityNorwich2956182552-2721

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