At the end of every Premier League weekend, BBC football pundit Garth Crooks compiles his thoughts and presents his 'Team of the Week'.
This week's choices are: As always, Garth also talks about the game's big talking points in his Crooks of the Matter.
Guglielmo Vicario (Tottenham Hotspur): What a savings!Other than Vicario stopping Nicolo Zaniolo from close range as he tried to score in a crucial moment. Tottenham beat Aston Villa 4-0 It would have been a game changer. The Italian keeper put his body on the line to make a save and it paid off.
It was another crucial clean sheet for Spurs, as goal difference could have an impact on issues late in the season. I have said many times that the best thing they did was to sack keeper Hugo Lloris – and that should have happened years ago.
Since Vicario's arrival, the Spurs keeper has scored a few goals for his team, which is exactly what a top-class keeper should do. Now, it's all about who finishes in 4th place. With a game in hand and a better goal difference, Spurs took the lead.
Cristian Romero (Tottenham Hotspur): Last week it was Micky van de Ven who made my team selection, this week it's Romero and for good reason. The Argentina international is the coolest defender on the pitch and he had to be when things got a little heated at Villa Park. Romero's presence became even more important when Van de Ven, who had been showing great performance despite being injured, was sent off in the second half.
Once Van de Ven left the pitch, Romero took control and looked great. Regular readers will know that I was furious with Romero about how unfairly he kept getting sent off. But he seems to have re-evaluated his game and realized that really good defenders don't need to kick opponents, they just defend.
Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool): Van Dijk's great performance The match against Manchester City ended in a 1-1 draw. It all started when the Liverpool captain made a spectacular interception when Phil Foden tried to receive the ball in an exchange early in the game. Then a cross from Bernardo Silva hit Erling Haaland's head and appeared to beat Van Dijk, but the Dutch defender calmly headed the ball away.
His overall passing and ball distribution was: [Bobby] In typical Charlton fashion, Van Dijk, on the other hand, didn't give Haaland a single kick throughout the game. But a sliding tackle on Foden in the second half as City's forwards were about to mount a counterattack was telling. Firstly, because although we rarely get to see the backside of Van Dijk, this occasion demanded it and the quality of the tackle earned him a respectful pat on the back from Foden.
This was a van Dijk masterclass.
Ben White (Arsenal): Brentford manager Thomas Frank was absolutely right. When Kai Havertz scored the winning goal, he had no right to be on the pitch. Arsenal beat Brentford 2-1. The Germany international was booked for an elbow but chose to dive into Brentford's penalty area to take a clear advantage. But what was more troubling was that, despite Brentford's defenders waving imaginary cards in the air in an attempt to draw attention to the incident, referee Robert Jones refused to do anything about it. It was a refusal.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta was seen gloating at Havertz in the dying seconds of the game, and praising his “winning style” in the post-match interview was poor advertising and added to Brentford's wounds. All I had to do was apply salt.
Fortunately for Arsenal, White was able to play a pivotal role in Arsenal's win over the Bees. Two beautifully floated crosses provided great assists in what was a pretty dirty game for the Gunners. If Arsenal are going to win the title, don't win it like this.
Cole Palmer (Chelsea): The boy has been having revelations since arriving at Stamford Bridge. It was clear that Manchester City were not ready to give him the game time he needed and with Jack Grealish making occasional appearances, Kevin De Bruyne, Silva, Rodri, How can they do that with Foden occupying the space? The wise choice was to leave the team and find playing time elsewhere worthy of his talent.
Well, he did just that, scoring 11 goals in the Premier League in his first season in top-level football. Palmer's shot was deftly deflected into the Newcastle goal by Nicholas Jackson, but his fine finish made no mistake, giving Chelsea a 2-1 lead over the visitors.
Palmer is an exceptional talent and it will be interesting to see if Gareth Southgate, having seen the youngster's performance against the Magpies, chooses him to represent England in future internationals. I think he earned it.
Declan Rice (Arsenal): If Arsenal were to lift the Premier League title, Rice would be a big part of it. It wasn't just his well-timed run into the box and header against Brentford, but also the support he provided to their midfield, particularly Martin Odegaard.
Abandoning the services of Granit Xhaka, a good but unstable cannon, and replacing him with Rice, a safe pairing, could ultimately prove to be a turning point in Arsenal's fortunes. be.
The Gunners spent a whopping £105m on Rice, an outrageous sum at the time, but it was a statement of intent to their fans and, more importantly, to their rivals. Meanwhile, they currently sit top of the Premier League and claim to be taken seriously as title contenders. But if Arsenal win the title, Rice will be worth every penny.
John Stones (Manchester City): What a great football game that was. But if you had told me that by the end of the game De Bruyne was substituted and Haaland was virtually non-existent and was City of Stones' best player, I would never have believed him.
Stones was outstanding, growing more confident in his new central midfield role with each game. The exchange of words between De Bruyne and manager Josep Guardiola, who took the Belgian international off the pitch in a tactical change, did not go well, and it was clear that the player was far from happy with the manager's decision. Guardiola needs to be careful. De Bruyne can join almost any team in the world, but John Stones cannot.
James Maddison (Tottenham Hotspur): There was no stopping Maddison from dominating the midfield. Spurs controlled this match against Aston Villa from start to finish and Maddison was at the heart of it all. His goal was a peach. [Pape] Searle. Maddison had to cover quite a bit of ground to get inside the six-yard box and rise to the end of the cross.
Tottenham's performances have gradually improved since Maddison returned from injury. But there is no doubt that Maddison must be kept fit if Spurs are to beat Aston Villa and claim the final Champions League spot.
Son Heung-min (Tottenham Hotspur): One goal and two assists says it all. From the moment the game started, there could only be one winner. Son's one-touch finish against Aston Villa demonstrated the striker's versatility. Not only can he score at half-time or score himself, he can also be a fox in the box. Also, since he was appointed as team captain, I feel that the Korean national team player has become more of a team player.
His assists to Brennan Johnson and Timo Werner not only proved the point, but destroyed Villa. The Villa captain should have been well aware of John McGinn's red card. A three-game suspension may have just cost his team a spot in the Champions League, but even if it wasn't a three-game suspension, such a tackle should be punished.
Danny Ings (West Ham United): He had a goal canceled, scored a beautiful goal on the turn, another shot hit Burnley's crossbar and the goalkeeper was brilliantly beaten – and Ings was on the pitch for only a few minutes. It was a minute.
The 31-year-old hasn't started a game in a West Ham shirt for quite some time, but he managed to salvage a point for the Hammers in a game that at one point appeared to have been lost. In fact, some may have thought his time in top-level football was coming to an end. Well, looking at his performance against a rejuvenated Burnley, that couldn't have been further from the truth. Ings looks like a player with a point to prove, so I think it would be in David Moyes' and West Ham's interests to let him prove it.
Alejandro Garnacho (Manchester United): In this game, Everton had two ill-timed tackles. Do James Tarkowski and Ben Godfrey understand the dangerous situation Everton are in and why they can't afford to be reckless in their own box? You would have thought they would have learned their lesson by now.
Manchester United, on the other hand, failed miserably against Fulham, couldn't even pick up a glove against Manchester City, and continue to make good progress all season with some obvious instability, but it's entirely avoidable. They managed to beat Everton by being awarded two penalties. Garnacho was the only United player to show any real effort. The Argentine looked sharp and interested. He was the player sent off for both offenses which cost Everton the game due to his willingness to take on defenders. He remains one of the most exciting elements of the game.
The scammers in question
I encouraged Liverpool to win the title, but Manchester City have refused to give up the title and I'm sure Arsenal will win the title too. Meanwhile, the draw between Liverpool and City at the weekend lived up to expectations, proving once again why the Premier League remains the envy of the world.
Who would have imagined that City's title win under manager Joe Mercer in the late 1960s would become a lightning rod for the club's modern obsession with trophies?
Arsenal won championships in the 70s under Bertie Mee and then Terry Neil, but their success was taken to another level by the sophistication of manager Arsene Wenger.
And who can forget Bill Shankly and Bob Paisley's time at Liverpool? These clubs are synonymous with league titles. This is literally etched in their history and is why it is so important for them to win again.
This title race is proving to be one of the best we've ever seen, and it won't be decided until the final kick in the final moments of the final day of the season. Football doesn't get any better than this.
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