TEAM: BURNLEY
There were only eight games this week due to the Carabao cup final and there wasn’t many top performances to choose from. However, Wolves didn’t know what hit them in the first half as Burnley were out the blocks extremely quickly, racing into a three goal lead with a bit of slick football and clinical finishing. It seemed so easy. Naturally, Wolves had to be better in the second half and even though they were, Burnley still got a fourth for an emphatic win. Well done also to Chelsea, Everton, Sheff Utd and Leicester.
GOALKEEPER: MARTIN DUBRAKVA (Newcastle)
We see this time and again in football, and will continue to see the benefits of a very good keeper. Although it was partly to do with poor Liverpool finishing, Dubravka still had to perform, be in the right place at the right time and pull off a few very good saves to keep the score down to just one throughout the game. Liverpool had chance after the chance but couldn’t add to their early goal. Then as we have seen so often, Newcastle got their rewards with a last second equaliser to break Liverpool hearts. Shout out also to Leeds’s Meslier, WBA’s Johnstone, Villa’s Martinez, Sheff Utd’s Ramsdale and West Ham’s Fabianski.
DEFENDER: LUKE SHAW (Man Utd)
I think he is easily playing the best football of his career and has been one of Utd’s more consistent players this season. Although it wasn’t a particularly exciting game, and Man Utd didn’t get the win, he was still the one bright spark, showing energy and desire marauding up and down the left flank. In the attacking third he was putting dangerous balls into the box and in the defence, he made himself very hard to beat. It was an impressive all around performance. Well done also to Burnley duo Taylor and Lowton, Leeds’ Ayling, Chelsea’s Silva, Sheff Utd’s Egan, Everton’s Holgate and Leicester’s Evans,
MIDFIELDER: MATHEUS PEREIRA (WBA)
He really is their talisman and absolutely ran the show against Villa. Literally everything was on show, skill, movement, passing, vision, running off the ball, free kicks, energy, desire, and he wasn’t afraid to put his foot in when it was needed. He was the go to man in every sense of the word and it was just sad his performance wasn’t rewarded with a win. Shout out also to Burnley duo McNeil and Westwood, Everton’s Richarlison, Brighton’s Bissouma, Sheff Utd’s Fleck, Chelsea’s Mount, Liverpool’s Thiago, Newcastle’s Saint-Maximin, Leicester’s Castagne and Palace’s Eze.
FORWARD: CHRIS WOOD (Burnley)
Obviously there was only going to be one winner. Burnley’s big man tore Wolves apart to be the first man in Premier League history to score a first half hat-trick away. It was a hat-trick that had a bit of everything, touch, close control, dribbling a clinical finishing for the first. Awareness and anticipation to be in the right place for the second. Then movement and good, old fashioned heading ability to power in the third. He also got an assist for the fourth. Well done also to his team mate Vydra, Villa’s Davis, Liverpool’s Salah, Sheff Utd’s McGoldrick, Chelsea’s Werner, Palace’s Zaha and Leicester’s Iheanacho.
MANAGER: SEAN DYCHE (Burnley)
Every season people predict it will be their last in the Premier League and every season they defy the odds, and on a shoe string budget. To add to this, every season Burnley seem to come up with a few very unexpected results and this was another of them. Although Wolves have been poor recently, nobody expected Burnley to blow them away in the first half, playing decent football with confidence and scoring some very good goals.
UNSUNG HERO: JOE WILLOCK (Newcastle)
Not exactly unsung again but I had no reservations about picking him for this award for the second week in row. Two weeks now he has come on to get a vital goal in dying seconds of the game to get points for his team. And the third time this season. Although you do see it in football, you just cant imagine how hard it is to come off the bench with minimal minutes and make a telling impact. So to do it three times already, with a team you are on loan to, he fully deserves as many mentions as he can continue to perform.
GAME: ASTON VILLA 2-2 WEST BROM
Aston Villa opened the scoring from the spot when, after some good football, El Ghazi’s shot was blocked, Barkley then got to the rebound first where he was adjudged to have been fouled by Ajayi, much to the bemusement of all around. However, El Ghazi duly slotted the penalty home (9). Midway thought the first half it seemed the ref evened things up as Maitland-Niles was adjudged to have been fouled by Konsa, with equal bemusement as the first incident. However, Pereira coolly scored from the spot (23). In the second half, following a long punt up field from WBA keeper Johnstone, Konsa controlled the ball then slipped to let Diagne in, he ran into the box and tried to curl into the far post, but Mings came diving in to block but he only diverted into his own net at the near post (47). There were plenty chances at each end but the vital moment came with virtually the last kick of the game. A ball was crossed to the far post where Watkins headed back in, the ball came off Bartley’s chest and bounced up, for substitute Davis to react quickest and stab home from a yard out ( 90+2)
GOAL: KELECHI IHEANACHO (Leicester)
Evans, just in his own half, looked up and played a long searching ball to the edge of the Palace box, for the run of Iheanacho. As the ball dropped over his shoulder, he stuck a foot out to take the pace off, taking him just inside the box by the right corner. While in between two defenders, he controlled the ball, cut back inside onto his left foot, and in one motion, created a yard and in a split second, unleashed and powerful, arrow like effort, at an acute angle, that somehow flew into the near post, leaving the keeper stranded.
FOOL: BERND LENO (Arsenal)
There were several candidates for this, Liverpool’s strikers, Klopp, Wolves and referee Chris Kavanagh, but it had to go to the Arsenal keeper. I am still scratching my head wondering how he managed to score an own goal, when the ball was going away from goal? It was truly comical. Richarlison’s cross from the byline was going across goal, Leno stooped down the collected the ball in his arms, but it went through his arms, off his heel and into the net for one of the most comical goals of the season. It made it worse that it was the only goal of the game and Arsenal lost. Ah well Bernd, prepare to be featured on all those football blooper DVD’s FOOL!
