MX23RW : Saturday, April 27 13:06:42| >> :600:327062:327062:

Premier League Team of the Week - Virgil van Dijk, Bernardo Silva, Ayoze Perez

Sports Mole selects its Premier League team of the week for gameweek 35, including Bernardo Silva, Ayoze Perez and four Liverpool players.

The Premier League title race looks set to go down to the wire after both Manchester City and Liverpool continued their faultless form over the weekend to leave Jurgen Klopp's side still two points clear at the top.

Liverpool's 2-0 win over Cardiff City lifted them back above Man City after the champions had squeezed past Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday, although things remain in the hands of Pep Guardiola's side ahead of Wednesday's crucial derby against Manchester United.

While neither team are slipping up in the title race, the top-four battle looks set to be decided by which team makes the fewest mistakes between now and the end of the season after Spurs, Arsenal, Manchester United and Chelsea all dropped points this weekend.

Tottenham's loss at Man City was perhaps expected, but United were humiliated by Everton, Arsenal slumped to a shock home defeat at the hands of Crystal Palace and Chelsea were held by Burnley on Monday night.

At the other end of the table, Brighton & Hove Albion inched further away from the relegation zone with a goalless draw against Wolverhampton Wanderers, while Newcastle United confirmed their survival by beating Southampton.

Leicester City rescued a late draw at West Ham United to leave one point separating four teams in the race for seventh place, with Watford beating Huddersfield Town.

Here, Sports Mole selects its Premier League team of the week for gameweek 35.



PL TOTW GW35

Man City bounced back from the disappointment of their Champions League exit with a narrow 1-0 win over the same team that knocked them out in the weekend's early game, but it could have been very different had Ederson not been at his best, continually coming out to deny Tottenham chances and making four key saves to protect his clean sheet.

It is an all-Merseyside six in front of Ederson, including three of the back four from City's title rivals Liverpool following their win over Cardiff. The Bluebirds did not exactly lay siege to the Liverpool goal, but Virgil van Dijk and in particular Joel Matip were key to a crucial clean sheet. Van Dijk was typically commanding at the back, while Matip was named man of the match having impressed both on and off the ball.

Trent Alexander-Arnold completes the Liverpool defensive trio at right-back courtesy of his clever assist for the breakthrough goal, having discussed a tactic at half time and then carried it out at the first available opportunity. Seamus Coleman also deserves a mention at right-back, while his Everton teammate Michael Keane is another who is unfortunate to miss out.

Lucas Digne does make the cut from the Toffees' memorable 4-0 win over United, though, having blasted home their third goal in addition to keeping another clean sheet.

There were a number of Everton players in the running for a place in this XI having produced the standout team performance of the weekend, but while the likes of Richarlison and Dominic Calvert-Lewin narrowly miss out, Gylfi Sigurdsson was arguably the best of the lot. The Iceland international continued his fine scoring record against United and created another goal in the rout, but he is forced into a deeper-lying playmaker position in this team.

Georginio Wijnaldum joins Sigurdsson in the holding two having scored the opening goal against Cardiff and thrived in a relatively unfamiliar holding role, which allowed others to have more licence to attack. Crystal Palace's Luka Milivojevic was also in the running for a midfield spot but is just pipped by the Dutchman.

Phil Foden is another who deserves an honourable mention having repaid Guardiola's faith in him with the only goal for City against Spurs, but it was Bernardo Silva who again earned most of the plaudits from the outfield players, showing exactly why he is in the running for the PFA Player of the Year award.

Watford's Gerard Deulofeu once again showed the sort of form which inspired the Hornets to the FA Cup final, scoring twice to help his side past Huddersfield, including a particularly clever opener after just five minutes.

Deulofeu was outshone by Ayoze Perez of Newcastle, though, as his compatriot helped himself to a first Premier League hat-trick against Southampton to mathematically confirm the Magpies' top-flight status for another season.

It is an unlikely figure leading the line this week as Christian Benteke gets the nod, having finally ended a year-long goal drought in the Premier League. The Belgian also helped himself to an assist as Palace continued their fine away form with a win at the Emirates, earning a place ahead of Ashley Barnes in this week's XI.

Share this article now:
Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero celebrates after scoring against West Ham in the Premier League on February 27, 2019
Read Next:
PL Team of the Week - Aguero, Robertson, Bernardo
>

Loading ...

Failed to load data.

Loading ...

Failed to load data.

Select and display your favourite team's news and scores in this panel

Loading ...

Failed to load data.

Loading ...

Failed to load data.

Select and display your favourite team's news and scores in this panel
Premier League
Championship
Scottish Premiership
La Liga
Coupe de France
Serie A
Bundesliga
Primeira Liga
League One
League Two
National League
Scottish Championship
Scottish League One
Scottish League Two
Turkish Super Lig
Belgian Pro League
Russian Premier League
Swedish Allsvenskan
Swiss Super League
Norwegian Eliteserien
Ukrainian Premier League
NIFL Premiership
Brasileiro
Liga MX
Uruguayan Primera Division
Major League Soccer
Australian A-League
Chinese Super League
Segunda Division
2.Bundesliga
Serie B
Ligue 2
Tables
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool36287184206491
2Manchester CityMan City35292489226789
3Tottenham HotspurSpurs362311265362970
4Chelsea35207859382167
5Arsenal35206969462366
6Manchester UnitedMan Utd35197963501364
7Wolverhampton WanderersWolves35149124443151
8Watford35148135050050
9Everton35147145044649
10Leicester CityLeicester35146154847148
11West Ham UnitedWest Ham36137164554-946
12Crystal Palace35126174348-542
13Newcastle UnitedNewcastle35118163544-941
14Bournemouth35125184962-1341
15Burnley35117174462-1840
16Southampton35910164158-1737
17Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton3597193254-2234
18Cardiff CityCardiff3594223065-3531
RFulham3565243376-4323
RHuddersfield TownHuddersfield3635282074-5414

Subscribe to our Newsletter


Transfer Talk Daily
Match previews - twice weekly
Morning Briefing (7am UTC)
Ultra close-up image of Kevin De Bruyne [NOT FOR USE IN ARTICLES]Get the latest transfer news, match previews and news direct to your inbox!

Loading ...

Failed to load data.

Loading ...

Failed to load data.

Select and display your favourite team's news and scores in this panel
Login, I already have my ad-free pass
Log in to customise Sports Mole
Buy ad-free access (show me the options)
Buy monthly ad-free access for £1.20/month
Buy yearly ad-free access for £12 (2 months free)
Settings - Logout - Manage your account
Settings - Logout - Manage your account