Premier League Team of the Week XXIV feat. Leicester and Manchester United stars

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Danny Drinkwater: In yet another typically understated display, Danny Drinkwater could be found all over the park. As is usually the case, The Foxes were happy to surrender the majority of the possession to their opponents, content instead to hit on the counter to devastating effect. To play this way requires high levels of sustained commitment and effort, something which the industrious Danny Drinkwater has been exhibiting in droves all season long. Leicester’s number four made six clearances, five tackles and the same number of interceptions. His destructive influence on Liverpool’s play was keenly felt and for all the huffing and puffing of Emre Can, Adam Lallana and Roberto Firmino, the efforts of Drinkwater and his colleagues prevented Kasper Schmeichel from having to make too many difficult saves.

Mark Noble: West Ham United’s skipper created three chances on the evening, in addition to his fabulous assist for Michail Antonio’s opener. While nothing should be taken away from what was a terrific header by the former Nottingham Forest winger, the ball from Noble to set up the goal was fantastic. Driving a pass from near the half-way line with pin-point accuracy to pick out the head of Antonio made the goal possible, and his influence on the game did not stop there. With Aston Villa down to ten men since the 19^th minute due to a moment of madness from Jordan Ayew, the Midlands outfit did not offer a great deal going forward, but the way that West Ham’s captain in particular kept the ball circulating was a joy to watch. Only misplacing eight of his 112 passes on the night, Noble capitalised on the numerical advantage and proceeded to tire out Villa’s midfield even more. When Garde’s troops threatened to break forward, Noble was quickly back in a solid defensive structure and as ever, was unafraid to stick a foot in to break up play.

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Riyad Mahrez: One of Leicester City’s several superstar performers this season was once again on top of his game against Liverpool, especially when employing an ability to carry the ball in tight spaces. Riyad Mahrez’s skilful dribbling; along with his well-renowned form, attract multiple opposition defenders to him, in turn creating the space for others. When he is left one-on-one with his man however, beating them never appears to pose him much challenge, successfully taking players on five times in the match against Klopp’s men. His wand of a left foot caused Mignolet to pull off a world-class save and stung his palms on other occasions too.

The Algerian; who has linked up with Vardy to such great effect throughout the Premier League campaign, was the one to see his rapid team-mate in space on the hour mark and after lofting over an excellently weighted ball, the hitman did the rest. Mahrez was also at the heart of a simply exquisite piece of passing play by Leicester City which took place on the edge of Liverpool’s box and on another day, could and possibly should have resulted in a penalty for the home side. Involved on multiple occasions as The Foxes knocked it around with one-touch play, The Reds were incapable of stopping the intricate passing and Mahrez floated between defenders to maintain the momentum of the move. Despite the fact that he never left the KP Stadium in the January transfer window, his signature will be well sought after once more come the summer months and it is not implausible that he could earn a move to one of Europe’s biggest clubs.