Team of the week: Double centurion Mo Salah and safe hands Bernd Leno make the cut... find out who else is in the team
After another action-packed weekend in the Premier League, BetMGM has compiled a team of the week according to advanced statistical data exclusively for FourFourTwo.
Goalkeeper: Bernd Leno, Fulham
The German’s excellent form has helped to lift Fulham into the top half of the Premier League. He made an impressive five stops during the Cottagers’ 5-0 rout of West Ham on Sunday, helping his side to keep their fifth clean sheet of the season.
Defender: Pascal Groß, Brighton
Despite not playing in his usual position, Groß was integral to Brighton’s attack during their 1-1 draw with Burnley at the AMEX Stadium on Saturday. The German created six chances for his team-mates before providing a pinpoint cross for team-mate Simon Adingra’s late equaliser.
Defender: Nathan Aké, Manchester City
The Dutch defender put in another impressive performance for Manchester City as they produced a second-half comeback at Kenilworth Road. Ake completed nine clearances and won seven out of his eight duels as he helped steer his side to victory after failing to win in their previous four games.
Defender: Virgil van Dijk, Liverpool
Van Dijk has looked back to his imperious best this season and he put in another rock-solid display during the Reds’ late victory over Crystal Palace. He completed 90 passes while also making eight clearances and winning eight of his nine duels. With Arsenal’s defeat to Aston Villa later on Saturday, Liverpool are sitting pretty in top spot and are now 7/2 to win the Premier League.
Defender: Destiny Udogie, Tottenham
The Italian impressed Spurs fans again with his usual energy down the left flank in his side’s 4-1 rout of Newcastle on Sunday. He opened the scoring early on after turning in Son Heung-min’s cross but was equally impressive defensively, making four clearances and eight recoveries.
Midfielder: Dejan Kulusevski, Tottenham
Udogie’s team-mate Kulusevski was at the heart of everything good Tottenham did going forward on Sunday. The Swede completed 36 out of his 40 passes and created five chances for his team-mates as Tottenham lifted themselves to fifth in the table. Ange Postecoglou’s men are now 2/1 to finish in the top four and qualify for the Champions League.
Midfielder: Simon Adingra, Brighton
The 21-year-old continued his impressive recent form as he secured his side a point against Burnley after nodding home an equaliser deep into the second half. The goal capped off an impressive all-round day for the Ivorian, who also created four chances and made three recoveries during the match.
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Midfielder: Richarlison, Tottenham
Kulusevski is joined in midfield by his Tottenham team-mate Richarlison. The Brazilian has had a tricky start to the campaign after undergoing hip surgery but Spurs fans will be hoping that his brace on Sunday is a sign of things to come. Remarkably, the first of his two goals against Newcastle was the first that he had scored with his feet for Tottenham since his £50 million move from Everton back in the summer of 2022.
Forward: Mohamed Salah, Liverpool
The Egyptian played a pivotal role in Liverpool’s second-half comeback against Crystal Palace, registering his 200th goal for the Reds as well as his 150th Premier League strike in the process. His assist for Harvey Elliott’s late winner took the Reds to the top of the table as they aim to lift their second Premier League title.
Forward: Raúl Jiménez, Fulham
Jiménez’s return to form will be a welcome sight for Fulham fans as he notched his fourth Premier League goal in his last five games during their demolition of West Ham on Sunday. His powerful header opened the scoring and helped continue his side’s strong form in recent weeks, with Sunday's victory the fourth game in a row in which they have scored at least three goals. They’re 15/2 to repeat that feat at Newcastle this weekend.
Forward: Son Heung-min, Tottenham
Son gives our Team of the Week a truly Tottenham flavour. The Spurs talisman was a constant threat throughout their demolition job on fellow Champions League-chasers Newcastle, assisting the first two before getting his well-deserved goal late on from the spot, as Postecoglu’s men picked up their first league victory in five games.
The team is based on the following metrics:
xG: Expected goals. A metric used to measure the quality of a shot based on variables such as shot angle, distance, type of assist and type of shot
G: Goals. The number of actual goals scored
xT: Expected threat. A metric used to measure ball progression, in particular the impact of a player’s dribbles and carries in taking a team into ‘dangerous' areas
xD: Expected defence. Used to measure how much ’threat’ a player prevented with their defensive actions
xA: Expected assists. Used to measure the pass before the shot where the pass is assigned xG value of that shot. Takes into account various factors such as type and length of pass as well as its end-point
All statistics provided by BetMGM. Visit betmgm.co.uk 18+ BeGambleAware.org
James Andrew is the editor of FourFourTwo, overseeing both the magazine and website. James is an NCTJ qualified journalist and began his career as a news reporter in regional newspapers in 2006 before moving into sport a year later. In 2011 he started a six year stint on the sports desk at the Daily Mail and MailOnline. James was appointed editor of FourFourTwo in December 2019. Across his career James has interviewed the likes of Franco Baresi, Sir Alex Ferguson, David Beckham and Michael Owen. James has been a Fulham season ticket holder since the mid-1990s and enjoys watching them home and away, through promotion and relegation.