Premier League Team of the Week XXV feat. Leicester City and Everton stars

Add as preferred source on Google

Embed from Getty Images

Heurelho Gomes: As Tottenham Hotspur enjoyed the lion’s share of the possession for the vast majority of the game against Watford on Saturday, Heurelho Gomes was a determined figure between the sticks and did his utmost to prevent Pochettino’s side from breaking the deadlock. The unexpected saves that a goalkeeper makes are often the most important to a side’s chances and this season, Gomes has certainly made his fair share of those. His first order of the day was to get down sharply to his left to stop a powerful shot by Ben Davies. It was the overlapping Welsh left-back who would go on to trouble Gomes again in the first half as his cross-cum-shot had to be tipped away.

Unorthodox is certainly an apt way to describe his approach to goalkeeping, and never was this more valid than when Harry Kane fired in an effort which Gomes parried initially, then proceeding to slap the ball further away with one hand. The important point to consider was that it worked. Heung-Min Son was also thwarted by Gomes as the acrobatic ‘keeper ensured that he positioned his significant frame in the way of any goal-bound efforts. With almost too many individual instances to mention, it is safe to say that he kept The Hornets in the game. Against his former club, it took a simply marvellously cultured cross with the outside of his right foot from Dele Alli to get the better of the Brazilian shot-stopping expert.

Kieran Trippier: Filling in for Tottenham’s mainstay at right-back; Kyle Walker, Kieran Trippier performed excellently against Watford and provided a concerted attacking threat on his flank. Certainly in this regard, Pochettino and Spurs did not miss out on Walker’s adventurous style, with the former Burnley man creating two chances from fine crosses at the end of forays down the right hand side. It was on another of these surging runs forward that he popped up with the winner, making no mistake from close range after England’s next great hope; Dele Alli, supplied a sumptuous cross. For the most part, Watford were rather subdued as an attacking threat, with Troy Deeney starting the day on the bench. However, they came on more strongly as the game progressed and Trippier did well throughout, making four tackles, the same number of blocks, and cleared his lines on three occasions.

Robert Huth: There has been no shortage of heroes for Leicester City this season, but Robert Huth has rarely been the recipient of the praise he deserves. Alongside Wes Morgan, the pair would face the wealth of attacking talent at Manchester City’s disposal and for the most part, their influence was nullified. Sergio Aguero was marshalled well by Huth and the German centre-half was on hand to put his body on the line when required. He made several vital headers clear from deep inside his own area and in fact did not lose an aerial duel throughout the ninety minutes. Huth blocked goal-bound efforts three times and made seven clearances, with some of these eventually developing into a lofted ball forward towards Jamie Vardy.

Embed from Getty Images

When the game was only three minutes old, Robert Huth popped up with the opening goal, showing terrific drive and determination to beat Demichelis to Riyad Mahrez’s delivery. Huth is hardly known for his goal-scoring prowess but amazingly, this would not be the only time he found the back of the net against The Citizens. The Argentine defender was once again marking the former Stoke City and Chelsea man later on in the game and; with Leicester already two goals to the good, Huth overpowered Demichelis to plant a firm header into the top corner of Joe Hart’s goal.

Maya Yoshida: Hardly an ever-present for Southampton this season, Maya Yoshida is generally still a reliable and solid performer who can be called in to do a job. When Koeman selected him to line up on the left of a back three on Saturday night, he would not have expected Yoshida to pop up with a goal for him, but that’s exactly what the versatile defender did. The Japanese international pounced on the ball like a veteran goal poacher after it had escaped Wanyama’s control. This turned out to be the winner and despite opening the scoring, Southampton turned out to be very pleased that they were able to maintain their winning position due to their Kenyan midfielder seeing a straight red for a reckless lunge with a significant portion of the game still to play. Yoshida got through a large amount of work as one of the nine remaining outfield players, making six clearances, three tackles, three interceptions and a couple of blocks. Whether Koeman will stick with the 3-4-1-2 system for upcoming matches remains to be seen, but the Dutchman will certainly have no concerns over the ability of Yoshida to perform well for the south coast outfit.

Christian Fuchs: Leicester City’s Austrian international defender was solidity personified against Manchester City, demonstrating the art of defending without taking unnecessary risks. This is in stark contrast to Man City’s full-backs who were frequently caught up-field and out of position, while Fuchs never allowed such an event to transpire. The left-back was successful in eight tackles and also made an important block of a shot that looked destined to cause Kasper Schmeichel some difficulty. He is certainly not a limited player however, showing his quality further up the field when delivering set-pieces. His crosses from the left created two chances for The Foxes and were very nearly converted. Fuchs did chalk up an assist to his name too, providing the delivery from a corner for Robert Huth to head home his second of the day and Leicester’s crucial third goal.