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At the end of every Premier League round of fixtures, BBC football pundit Garth Crooks is on hand to give you his Team of the Week.
But who has he picked this time? Take a look and then pick your own team below. As ever, Garth also has his say on the game’s big talking points in the Crooks of the Matter.
Alisson (Liverpool)
I don’t think I’ve seen a capitulation quite like it. Manchester United had a complete meltdown. Last week I said that United looked like a proper football team again after their EFL Cup win against Newcastle but to lose 7-0 to Liverpool will live with this group of United players for a lifetime.
Liverpool on the other hand were as determined to keep a clean sheet as they were to score goals. Alisson will feel as elated as his strikers because he didn’t give United a sniff. The clean sheet will have put the icing on the result for Liverpool.
Nathan Ake (Manchester City)
I remember seeing this lad as an 18-year-old playing for Chelsea U21s, before he went on loan to Watford and then Bournemouth. Ake was especially impressive at Bournemouth where he didn’t just improve as a player but was prepared to bring his intelligence and reading of the game to the defensive frailties of the South West club.
At no point while playing for those clubs did I think the Netherlands international would become the accomplished defender he is today. To say he has worked at his game would be an understatement. Ake is a tremendous defender and his tackle on Sean Longstaff, who took a tad too long to get his shot away for Newcastle, was outstanding.
If only there were more English youngsters who were prepared to slavishly work at their game and less interference from parents we would perhaps start creating more defenders like Ake.
Wesley Fofana (Chelsea)
Getting a striker to score a goal in open play these days for Chelsea is about as tough as it gets. It took French defender Fofana to score and that was from a set piece. Not that there is anything wrong with relying on set plays – it simply suggests your team is struggling to score from open play.
Fortunately for Chelsea, Fofana came back from injury as Thiago Silva sustained his. However, Fofana is in the team just in time to face Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday night in the Champions League.
Owner Todd Boehly insists he will stick with Graham Potter regardless and let his plan come to fruition. Plan? What plan? If he has got any sense he will do precisely what his fans end up telling him to do where Potter is concerned and like it. Otherwise it will be his name they are chanting and it won’t be pleasant.
Andy Robertson (Liverpool)
There was a time when Robertson was getting into my team almost on a weekly basis. Since those days when Liverpool felt like they were winning everything, he has been through a difficult period and had to work hard to recapture his best form.
His constant raids down Manchester United’s right-hand side, his precision passing and quality balls into the penalty area made you think for a moment he had never lost it. I don’t know who it was that said you don’t become a bad player overnight, but whoever it was, he was right.
Bernardo Silva (Manchester City)
The Portugal international is so unlucky not to be starting more games for Manchester City. Silva has been quite brilliant whenever he’s played for City while it seems he still has to prove himself to his manager Pep Guardiola. He does what Jack Grealish fails to do, at least on a regular basis, and that is score goals.
Silva’s post-match comments were also very interesting. Unlike his manager who insists they are only concerned with their own results, Silva was quick to point out that Arsenal are very much on their mind and acutely aware the Gunners are five points clear. Any slip up now by City and it’s curtains.
Alexis Mac Allister (Brighton)
His penalty strike was emphatic and his performance continually upset West Ham all afternoon. The Argentine international has been in sparkling form since his return from a successful World Cup. However, West Ham look in bad shape based on this display.
This was their heaviest defeat of the season and they weren’t much better in the FA Cup tie against Manchester United in midweek either. If the Hammers had beaten United it would have given them access to a quarter-final tie at home against Fulham and their fans the prospect of a possible semi-final and something to look forward to.
This latest defeat only serves to make life even more excruciating for David Moyes while hearing their fans chanting “you’re getting sacked in the morning” puts the writing clearly on the wall. At least he knows where he stands.
Thomas Partey (Arsenal)
At the moment everything Arsenal seem to touch turns to gold. Granit Xhaka misses his first Premier League game of the season, just as Partey returns to the side from injury and has the game of his life.
The Ghana international got Arsenal back into the game after an awful start. It was also his perseverance and drive on the edge of the Bournemouth box that provided the opening for Ben White to score the equaliser – the England defender’s first goal for the club.
Mikel Arteta could be the youngest manager ever to win the Premier league title – as if winning the thing wasn’t enough.
Phil Foden (Manchester City)
Three goals in the past three games should tell you all you need to know about the form Foden is in at the moment. Whatever happened to his confidence during the World Cup with England in Qatar appears to be well and truly over.
However, Foden may want to think long and hard about any future invitations to join the England squad if Gareth Southgate persists on thinking the Manchester City midfielder may be good enough for City, the title holders, but not for him.
Against Newcastle, Foden once again churned out a performance similar to the kind he was producing prior to the World Cup. Only this time there is no England squad to navigate and mess with his confidence.
Brennan Johnson (Nottingham Forest)
The last time Johnson made my team selection he also scored two goals and gained valuable points for Nottingham Forest. This time it was against an Everton side also in desperate need of points.
When he first made my team I said he was a very willing player who had previously struggled in front of goal. Well, three months have passed since then and the way he took his second goal of the game against Everton, he doesn’t seem to be struggling in front of goal any more.
This is a young man who has clearly worked at his craft and who, along with Morgan Gibbs-White, is taking Forest into a much safer place than when they arrived.
Cody Gakpo (Liverpool)
Since the departure of Sadio Mane to Bayern Munich, Liverpool fans have been patiently waiting to see a replacement they could embrace. I think Gakpo might be that player. The former PSV striker has settled in to his role at Anfield seamlessly and in a manner of weeks.
He is composed in front of goal and a team player – both very much in the image of Mane. Much has been said about where Liverpool currently are as a team and whether they might be on the decline. Well, not on this performance.
United were undressed by Liverpool and there are only two things stopping Liverpool from becoming a major European force again: their names are Jude Bellingham and Declan Rice.
Mohamed Salah (Liverpool)
It’s been a long time since Salah made my team but after his performance against Manchester United it was impossible to leave him out. It was as though he suddenly rolled back the years.
To become Liverpool’s leading Premier League scorer is a nice record to have but I’m not entirely surprised considering how much he enjoys scoring goals.
The Crooks of the Matter
Anyone who supports a London team, as well as countless others, who saw the video footage of Ian Wright hysterically celebrating Arsenal’s last-minute victory over Bournemouth, must have felt the pain we are all feeling.
Wrighty’s celebration in the Match of the Day green room epitomised just how much the prospect of winning the Premier League title means to him and every single Arsenal fan on the planet.
I had Arsenal fans from as far as Nigeria and Dubai sending me copies of the footage in the middle of the night – punishing me, largely due to my association with Spurs, as they know how deep the rivalry goes between the two clubs.
My issue is: do the current group of Tottenham players or the manager have any idea what Spurs fans are going through right now?
With every goal and victory celebration Arsenal are inching their way towards an elusive Premier League title. Meanwhile the prospect of them winning this thing is becoming unbearable. Is there no one who can save us from this perpetual agony?
Pick your XI from our list and share with your friends.
