Forest star Navas shines on debut to make Premier League best XI
This week’s team of the week is dominated by Brentford, Leicester, Nottingham Forest and Wolves, who all have two players each after their respective wins at the weekend. Players from Brighton, Fulham and Tottenham also make the cut.
Keylor Navas (Nottingham Forest) – 7.91
Nottingham Forest made it seven home Premier League games unbeaten with a hard fought 1-0 win over relegation rivals Leeds on Sunday. Keylor Navas made his debut and showed exactly why Forest tried so hard to sign the experienced veteran goalkeeper. Navas made four saves and one claim, while also making 12 ball recoveries, which in turn helped Steve Cooper’s side to only their sixth clean sheet in the Premier League this season. Navas’ performance ensured his side won the three points, while also earning him a WhoScored rating of 7.91.
Fulham secured a valuable point away from home on Friday night as they drew 0-0 with west London rivals Chelsea, ending the weekend only eight points outside off the top four. Though the Blues had the majority of the possession, they were unable to find away past Fulham’s defence, and in particular Kenny Tete. Up against Chelsea’s new signings, he was able to keep Mykhailo Mudryk quiet in the first half, and then Noni Madueke in the second. Tete was not dribbled past once in the game, while he also completed two of his own, which only Willian (6) could better in the game. Defensively he made one tackle, three interceptions and three clearances, helping his side to a valuable point and himself to a 7.50 WhoScored rating.
Wolves recorded only their fifth Premier League win of the season on Saturday and did so in emphatic fashion, beating Liverpool 3-0. While much of the credit will of course go to the frontline for scoring three times against Jurgen Klopp’s side, the defence, namely Max Kilman, should be up for praise. While he may not have made any tackles, Kilman won two aerial duels and was decisive in maintaining the clean sheet for his side at key moments, with two clearances off the line; no player has made more in a Premier League game this season. He also maintained a pass success rate of 85.4%, earning Kilman a WhoScored rating of 8.52.
Brentford extended their unbeaten run in the league to nine games with an empathic 3-0 win over Southampton on Saturday. The first goal came shortly before the break as Ben Mee headed the Bees ahead, scoring from one of his three shots. He of course played his part defensively with four aerial duels won, one tackle and one interception, while no player was able to dribble past the centre-back as Mee returned a WhoScored rating of 8.34.
Rico Henry also played his role in maintaining order at the back for the Bees, winning possession in the midfield third six times, which only Mathias Jensen (8) could better in the match. But it was offensively where he was key for his side, registering one key pass, which resulted in the assist for the third goal, while also having a shot of his own. Henry as a result earned a WhoScored rating of 7.75 for his efforts.
Leicester recorded their first Premier League win since the World Cup break with a dramatic 4-2 win away at in-form Aston Villa. For his efforts, Tete earned the man of the match award at Villa Park, scoring once from a total of three shots and completing three more dribbles than any other player in the match (6). In addition, no player won possession in the attacking third more times than the winger as Tete garnered a WhoScored rating of 8.31.
Ruben Neves scored the vital third for Wolves against Liverpool on Saturday with his only shot of the game to secure the three points for his side. The Portuguese midfielder maintained a pass success rate of 83.7%, including registering one key pass and won all three of his aerial duels, while making the joint most tackles (3) and joint most clearances in the game (7). For his performance, Neves won the man of the match award, yielding a WhoScored rating of 8.82, which was enough to win the Premier League player of the week accolade.
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg (Tottenham) – 7.79
Tottenham secured a valuable three points in their quest for a top four finish, beating title contenders Manchester City 1-0 on Sunday. While Harry Kane’s record-breaking goal hogged the headline, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg quietly helped Spurs to pull off the result against the best attacking team in the league. Hojbjerg registered one key pass, which resulted in the assist for the only goal in the game, as well as recording a shot of his own. His defensive work was key for Spurs as he made three tackles, two clearances and two interceptions, aiding his side to back-to-back clean sheets in the league and Hojbjerg to a WhoScored rating of 7.79.
Kaoru Mitoma (Brighton) – 7.95
Brighton continued their great form with a 1-0 win over Bournemouth on Saturday, stretching their unbeaten record in the league to six. One player who has been particularly important in this run has been Kaoru Mitoma, who put in his third successive WhoScored man of the match performance for Brighton. He was again on the scoresheet, netting one from three shots, while also completing more dribbles than any other player in the match (3) and maintaining a pass success rate of 84.8% in the match.
Kelechi Iheanacho (Leicester) – 8.30
Kelechi Iheanacho was extremely unlucky to miss out on the man of the match award in Leicester's 4-2 win at Villa, but put in an extremely positive performance to help secure his side the win. Iheanacho directly contributed to three of the Foxes' four goals, registering two assists from two key passes and bagging one goal from two shots. He also made one tackle and two clearances in a drama filled game, but one in which his side was able to secure all three points for the first time since November.
Brennan Johnson (Nottingham Forest) – 7.76
While Navas prevented the goals, it was Brennan Johnson at the other end who scored the winner. While he may have only had one shot in the game, he also registered two key passes and completed one dribble. Forest had a lot of work to do off the ball with their limited possession (30.1%) and Johnson was no different, winning one aerial duel, two tackles and making one clearance. This helped Johnson to a WhoScored rating of 7.76 to round off the team of the week.
