Premier League Team of the Week XXVI feat. Spurs and Chelsea stars

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Willian: Chelsea’s player of the season put in another wonderful display against Newcastle United on Saturday evening, grabbing a goal and an assist on The Blues’ march to a comfortable victory. He provided the opening goal for Diego Costa after initially making space for himself in a midfield area with a quick jink past his marker. From there, he went on to draw the attention of further defenders before slipping in Chelsea’s number 19. Willian also got on the score-sheet himself and the most notable part about; aside from Diego Costa’s perfect pass, was the vast ground which Willian made up to get in support of the Spanish striker. The Brazilian had something of a free role against The Magpies but operated primarily in a central area which was something of a change from his usual location on one of the flanks. Nevertheless, here he was able to use his boundless energy to give both Cheick Tioté and Rolando Aarons a torrid time. Willian won four fouls for his team as a result of his pace and trickery, beat an opponent three times and created a couple of chances for team-mates in an overall superb performance.

Cesc Fabregas: Cesc Fabregas was mesmeric and metronomic in the centre of the park, dictating the pace of the game as we know he can do. Fabregas found his intended target with 88 out of 95 passes, with one of these being a fabulous assist for Pedro. In a manner comparable to a quarterback in the Superbowl, Fabregas picked out the pacey Spanish winger over the top of Newcastle’s back-line, landing the ball perfectly on his chest. He demonstrated the same skill in providing Eden Hazard with a golden opportunity to open his Premier League account for the term and but for an unfortunate touch, the former Barcelona midfielder would have had another assist to his name. Now that Ramires has left for China, we may well see more of Fabregas in a slightly deeper midfield role and although this may not help his goal tally, his involvement on the game can certainly be hugely significant.

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Giannelli Imbula: The former Marseille man made a very fine start to life in the Premier League for The Potters, showing no signs of nerves having become Stoke City’s record signing when Mark Hughes acquired him from F.C. Porto for the princely sum of £18.3 million. His goal; which opened his team’s account on the day, was an instinctive but nonetheless top-class strike from just outside the penalty area. It was a fantastic all-round display, especially for someone who was getting their first real taste of Premier League action. Imbula was composed on the ball, came up with some neat touches to enthuse the crowd, and also distributed the ball intelligently to team-mates. Emphasising the wide ranging nature of the Frenchman’s impact against Bournemouth, Imbula beat his man four times, won three aerial duels and also made a trio of interceptions.

Wahbi Khazri: One of several Sunderland signings during the January transfer window; with Lamine Koné being another notable addition, Wahbi Khazri took a significant step towards justifying Sam Allardyce’s faith in him. From the very first minute, the Tunisian demonstrated a tremendous desire to work hard for his team. We saw this in a defensive sense; backing up Patrick van Aanholt, but Khazri was also one of the main players to pressurise United’s defenders when Sunderland did make a rare foray into the opposite half. He already appears to have developed a fine understanding with the Dutch left-back and often as a result of good combination work between the pair, Khazri created five chances for team-mates. The winger looked quick on his feet, determined to drive at defenders directly and commit them, winning a couple of fouls in the process. Aside from his endeavour, Wahbi Khazri can clearly deliver a fantastic dead-ball. With Sam Allardyce’s love of a set-piece goal, this particular ability could go a long way to earning The Black Cats some crucial points between now and the end of the season. A ball into the right area went through everyone waiting in the box and put Sunderland into an early lead against The Red Devils. Khazri also played a significant part in the winner for his side too, finding just the right area for an un-marked Koné to meet the ball in an unstoppable fashion.