After a third week of Premier League action is concluded, we take a look at the star performers that make up our team of the week.
Goalkeeper: Alphonse Areola
In a week of superb goalkeeping, our number 1 spot was a hard choice. Areola is our selection after his nine saves led West Ham to a 3-1 victory against a strong Brighton side. This result leaves the Hammers 2nd in the table, after a draw against Bournemouth, and a win against Chelsea last weekend. The Frenchman faced an XG on target of 1.95 and impressively only conceded one goal. Even with stats aside, it was a magnificent performance - with numerous "worldie" saves to protect West Ham's lead until the final whistle.
Left-Back: Ben Chilwell
Playing in a new advanced position under Mauricio Pochettino, Chilwell has flourished playing almost as a left-winger. The England international showed his attacking threat on the opening weekend against Liverpool, grabbing an assist and an unfortunately disallowed goal, and has shown it again during Chelsea's 3-0 win against Luton Town. Chilwell created the most chances in the match, with four, and got into plenty of dangerous positions. Although he has no goal contributions to show for it, Chilwell was a key part of Chelsea finally showing their ability to score plenty of goals.
Left Centre-Back: Micky van de Ven
Tottenham's new centre-half had impressed in his first two matches, but particularly showed his physical prowess and pace in their 2-0 win away at Bournemouth. The 22-year-old did particularly well to keep Bournemouth's key man, Dominic Solanke, quiet. Solanke only managed one shot, far wide of the target, and had the least touches (22) of any outfield player to play the 90. Not only did his defensive work produce a clean sheet for the North London outfit, van de Ven's participation in build-up play was nothing short of excellence; the Dutchman completed the most passes in the match (69). He looks set to be one of the most exciting young centre-backs this season.
Right Centre-Back: Kurt Zouma
The second West Ham player in this team is Kurt Zouma. Defending against a side that had 78% of the ball is no easy feat, and Zouma excelled at it - managing the joint most clearances for a single player this weekend (12). The Frenchman has been a key part of David Moyes's team this season, managing 3-1 victories over both Chelsea (last week) and Brighton (this gameweek). Preventing both, very high scoring, attacks from managing more than one goal has been a key reason as to why West Ham are currently 2nd in the table; their defence has been rock solid.
Right-Back: Matty Cash
Matty Cash is a shoo-in for our team of the week, with two excellently taken goals - both thanks to him playing as a right-wing-back. In fact, the Polish international was playing on the shoulder of the last defender for both goals - almost as a right-winger (as Ben Chilwell has been playing for Chelsea, on the opposite flank). Both Cash and Lucas Digne were playing as wing-backs in a new five-at-the-back system that allowed Villa's attack to flourish in a 3-1 victory over Burnley. Cash's attacking freedom could potentially threaten Liverpool's weak defence next weekend.
Defensive Midfielder: Rodri
Manchester City's anchor always performs at the top level, and yet doesn't often receive the credit that he deserves. The Spaniard's man-of-the-match performance was topped off with an incredible 88th-minute strike to win the match, 2-1 away at Sheffield United. Rodri appears to have added attacking output to his game recently, scoring in the Champions League final last season and scoring twice already this season (whilst also managing an assist). This adds even more value to himself, as he fills the goalscoring midfielder gap left by Ilkay Gundogan.
Central Midfielder: Yves Bissouma
Bissouma dropped yet another near-flawless performance, playing alongside Pape Sarr and James Maddison in one of the most in form, and balanced, midfields in the league. Completing both the most dribbles and the most tackles in the match, Bissouma displayed his offensive and defensive capabilities and showed why he is the perfect central midfielder. The Malian has found his feet under new gaffer Mauricio Pochettino, despite Antonio Conte calling him "the only player that is struggling with the tactic". Bissouma only played 130 minutes in Tottenham's first eight fixtures of the 2022/23 season. Despite last year being a rocky campaign, Bissouma has hit the ground running this season and looks to be back to his best.
Central Midfielder: Declan Rice
When Arsenal splashed £100 million (plus £5 million add-ons) on Declan Rice, there were mixed feelings around the transfer. Rice has massively impressed both for West Ham and England, but £100 million is a huge fee; Arsenal spent a club record on Rice, and their last club record (Nicolas Pepe) did not work out. However, the 24-year-old has performed at the same top level that he has done previously, and has replaced Granit Xhaka perfectly. Rice had a passing accuracy of 96% and managed four tackles (the most in the match). The midfielder is at the highest standard in the Premier League, and it shows. In the knockout stages of the Champions League, Rice will provide the strong backbone of the team that Arsenal will need to defeat Europe's strongest sides.
Left Winger - Anthony Gordon
After a sporadic amount of minutes for Newcastle last season, following his £40 million move from Everton, Gordon was not playing at his highest standard. However, after cementing himself as a starter for England U-21s, and winning the U21 Euro's, the winger appears to have improved. In an unfortunate 2-1 loss to Liverpool, Gordon scored early on to take the lead for Newcastle. If it was not for Darwin Nunez's two late goals, Anthony Gordon would've been a contender for man of the match; he created two chances, had three shots on target, and (tied with Mo Salah) had the most dribbles completed (3). Also grabbing an assist earlier this campaign, the 22-year-old appears to have become a starter under Eddie Howe and looks to have a great season ahead of himself.
Striker: Darwin Nunez
Darwin Nunez looked sure to be Liverpool's starting striker, after a high-scoring pre-season and receiving the number nine shirt. However, Nunez was merely a substitute in Liverpool's opening two matches this season - playing only 28 minutes. The Uruguayan was a substitute yet again this week, coming on after 77 minutes. However, Nunez equalised just four minutes later and won the match with his second in the 93rd minute. This impressive impact in such a short cameo should secure him a place in the starting lineup next weekend, and a few more goals should be coming his way in the near future.
Right Winger: Raheem Sterling
Raheem Sterling, like Gordon and Nunez, also had a tough 2022/23 season - scoring six goals, his lowest tally since 2015/16. However, after a promising performance against West Ham last weekend, Sterling opened his 2023/24 bank account this weekend with two goals against Luton Town. His man-of-the-match performance included five shots from inside the box and two chances created. With Christopher Nkunku injured for the foreseeable future, Sterling looks like Chelsea's main talisman and is expected to have a much improved season on his last.
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